Brown just recently released a new album, and his twitter page was a fantastic way to advertise the release and remind everyone to go out and by the record. This is an example of kairos. Another excellent example of Chris Brown’s use of kairos is his habit of tweeting in response to his actions. For instance, Brown was recently scrutinized for destroying a dressing room on Good Morning America after he was angered when asked multiple questions about 
his past relationship with fellow entertainer, Rihanna. This incident occurred on March 22, 2011. The very same day, twitter-ers can find multiple tweets being sent out by Brown that have obvious underlying meaning about the whole affair. For instance, Brown wrote “All my fans!!! This album is for you and only you!!! I’m so tired of everyone else!! Honestly!!” Brown is obviously referring to his haters when using the words “everyone else.” Brown is also using pathos in his tweets by talking about how much he adores his fans and also by re-tweeting other posts by fans of his that have something positive to day. For instance, if a fan tags Chris Brown in a tweet and Chris likes what it says, he can re-tweet it on his own page for his millions of followers to read. This sends the message that Chris takes time out of his day to actually read what people are saying about him on twitter and acknowledge when his fans are trying to get his attention. There are tweets on Brown’s page that mention other celebrities, but rarely will you find him having a conversation with someone else over twitter. Duri
ng his album’s release, Chris made sure to mention all the other musicians that are featured on the album. It seems as though Brown’s main reason for having a twitter account is to promote the things going on in his life. Right now, his album is what is most important to him, so that’s what we see as a common theme in most of his tweets. In many other places, such as magazine and T
V, we see Chris Brown stereotyped as an angry, violent young man who thinks highly of himself and of his actions. But by just reading his twitter page, Brown comes off as an appreciative and loving guy who really cares about what he does and hopes the rest of the world does to. The next celebrity I chose was Daniel Tosh. Unlike Chris Brown, Tosh is a comedian who aims most of his tweets towards the theme of humor. Similar to Brown, Tosh speaks in first person for most of his tweets, which leads us to believe that he in fact writes them all himself. Also, we know Daniel is a pretty computer-savvy guy, (he has a show on television all about funny online videos) so his involvement in twitter is believable. Also, like I mentioned before, most of Tosh’s tweets are comical, much like the character he portrays on his TV show, Tosh.0. In order to reach to his audience, 
Tosh sometimes tweets questions that he expects his followers to answer. Also, Tosh sometimes tags his fans in his tweets or replies to tweets that his fans tag him in. In fact, over 100 of Tosh’s tweets are replies to his fans. This shows that Tosh finds it important to show his fans that he reads what they have to say and respond to it. Daniel Tosh maintains his comedic ethos but posting many tweets that will have his followers laughing. Tosh also created pathos by showing his fans that he reads their opinions and statements. Daniel Tosh has over 1,500,000 follow
ers, so the fact he reads everything they have to say is impressive. The appearance of Tosh’s page is very simple and his bio next to his picture is simple as well. I believe Tosh made it this way because he is a simple guy who just wants to make people laugh. He wants people that visit his page to read his material, not looks at pretty pictures or be distracted by advertisement. Although, Tosh does subtly include one advertisement on his page: his profile picture. It includes the text “tosh.0” which is the name of his TV show on Comedy Central. Daniel Tosh is known a controversial comedian who jokes are sometimes seen as racy and inappropriate. Tosh’s twitter page is definitely not as raunchy as his Comedy Central TV show, and perhaps this is because he has certain guidelines he has to follow in order to maintain his account. The Internet is a dangerous place for celebrities to speak their minds, and I’m sure Tosh has to monitor what he says in his tweets.
A similarity between Brown and Tosh is their use of speaking in first person when they tweet to the world. By using words such as “me” and “I,” the public has an easier time believing that it really is the celebrity behind the tweeting as opposed to a manager or hired assistant. Also, Tosh and Brown both use their twitters to speak to their fans. Both celebrities respond to posts made about them by their fans, and mention how they are thankful for their fan’s support. Both Tosh and Brown have over a million followers, which proves they both have a huge fan base. Some of the differences between Brown and Tosh are the themes of their tweets. While Chris Brown uses his twitter to keep the public updated on his daily successes/activity, Daniel Tosh posts witty comments and random jokes in order to keep his followers entertained. Chris constantly thanks his fans and lets them know how appreciative he is, when Tosh thanks them every so often. Chris most likely does this because he knows how many times he has screwed up in his career, and his fans are the only things keeping him alive. Chris Brown
also features a picture of himself as the page background, an exaggerated bio which features capitalized words and exclamation marks. Daniel Tosh has a simple black background with a bio consisting of 4, simple, un-capitalized words. I think the differences between these two pages reflect the men whom they belong to. For instance, Chris Brown is a loud-mouthed musician who is known for his spunky personality and incredible voice. It’s only normal for him to use capital letters and exaggerated punctuation. On the other hand, Daniel Tosh is a recent addition to the Comedy Central comedic team, and isn’t searching for the same entertainment/musical success that Brown is after.
I believe the main purpose behind social media is access into the lives of the unknown. People spend hours on sites like Facebook and Twitter not only to update others on the activities in their life, but also to find out what the rest of the world is up to. For celebrities, social media is way for them to better connect to the people “below” them. Both Daniel Tosh and Chris Brown have twitters that are open to the public. In other words, anyone in the world with access to a twitter can read what Tosh and Brown are up to. People find it fascinating to be able to read deeper into the lives of the rich and famous. When you read a tweet about how you’re favorite celebrity is out to lunch at a certain spot or buying groceries, you automatically feel attached to them. Being “in touch” with someone famous is everyone’s secret pleasure. The downside to social media is the opportunity for anyone to find and spot out a person’s flaws or mistakes. The latest Hollywood gossip can be found on numerous popular celebrity blogs, which dedicate their entire empire on pointing out celebrity drama. Another downside that social media brings to our culture is the disappearance of face-to-face conversation. Instead of casually walking up to a girl to ask her on a date, a guy might first friend her on Facebook, check out her pictures, then send her a message asking if she’s busy on Saturday. This absence of personal contact will create extreme social awkwardness in the future.
Screenshot, "Chris Brown," http://twitter.com/#!/chrisbrown
Screenshot, "Daniel Tosh," http://twitter.com/#!/danieltosh
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