When Agustín Paz, head of social networks and online events at Penguin Random House, spoke to La Vanguardia a few days ago about a hypothetical scenario in which Twitter did not exist, he was convinced that this was not going to happen. "At least, not in the near future." However, he recognized that, "as an act of prudence", Penguin Spain has downloaded the tweet history of all the accounts they manage, "in case this ever closed, so that all the work would not be in vain and we could prove it and transfer it to another social network”. With this action, Paz shows how important it is for the group and its publishers to be present in the digital landscape and admits that “today, the option of not being on the networks is not conceivable. The competition would eat us up and we would lose our most direct way of getting feedback from our readers.”
What during the time of the talk the same interviewee described as "something extreme although farsighted", has become the usual among users in the last week. There are many who acknowledge that they are taking precautions and that they have asked the company now run by Elon Musk to send them a report with the work done. Something that Jordi Araz, head of production and who runs the social networks of the Teatre Aquitània, has also requested. “I remember going on Twitter a few days ago and thinking that everything had turned apocalyptic. It seemed that the network was going to fall at any moment. Faced with this scenario, we decided to download the history. For us, Twitter is a very important tool, as it allows us not only to talk to our public, but also to report on both the works on the bill and current promotions”.
The team that runs the web and social networks of the publishing division of Grupo Planeta, coordinated by Nahir Gutiérrez, also recognizes that this medium is aware of the chaos unleashed since the magnate took command of the company. However, he insists, “it is not up to us to talk about the disappearance of a network. The world is changing and the world of communication even more so. Whatever happens, what remains immovable is the objective of Planetadelibros, which is to search through social networks for the way to encourage reading and get our books to new readers”.
All in all, Gutiérrez recalls that, although Twitter is a channel through which they connect with a large audience, "video is the star format" and on which they are focusing part of their resources, although, they warn, "it is not the same to create a video for YouTube than for TikTok”. Planeta was the first large publishing group to be present on this platform. “We saw an opportunity to connect with our youngest readers. Just as booktubers appeared on YouTube at the time, TikTok has brought us booktokers. We like to think that in each new format there is always a space that puts the books in the center”, he considers.
However, if there is a field in which this social network becomes the queen, that is none other than the musical. Artists and record companies have been able to take advantage of the momentum and implement the app not only as a way to promote songs, but also to present albums and give concerts. Proof of this is Rosalía, who exclusively showed the audience her Motomami album on this channel. The Catalan broke ground, not only adapting her lyrics —many of them a nod to youth jargon and the language used in networks— but also with this new form of show that is triumphant among generation Z and, increasingly, among veterans , because there were many who downloaded the application to enjoy the show. Paul Hourican, head of music operations in the United Kingdom at TikTok, reminds La Vanguardia that the study The Power of TikTok, prepared by Kantar, reflects that “67% of the world's users of the platform are over 25 years of age. These data have encouraged very diverse artists to join the platform such as Led Zeppelin, U2 and even Raphael himself.
For years, the networks have also been a breeding ground for fresh voices. Leo Rizzi, for example, whose career began on TikTok by posting the song Amapolas. The melody ended up being liked so much that it went viral and the record companies took notice of it. Now he is part of the concert circuit, something unthinkable years ago, when there were no social networks. “Before, either you played on the radio or you were never going to succeed in the world of music. Now, artists have many more ways to publicize their songs and that always has to be seen as something positive”, explains Karin Herrero, DJ and presenter of LOS40. The new possibilities are so many on TikTok that record companies, although they are no strangers to what is happening on Twitter, are perhaps the least affected.
What happens to the cinema? Manuel Palos, director of marketing and communication at Avalon, acknowledges that he is not as aware of Twitter as other cultural sectors, since "networks do not influence as much as we can sometimes think in terms of business, that is, whether a film works or not ”. However, he admits its usefulness "when it comes to giving us a voice and accommodating our brand and our editorial line." For the moment, the production company has not taken any precautions for what could happen, although it acknowledges that it is the "liveliest social network", because through it they announce new releases. Something that they also do on YouTube and Instagram, although the possibility of viralization of the news is greater in the blue bird network. Marvel is an example of this. All you have to do is post a tweet with the trailer for a new movie or unpublished photos from a shoot and wait a few seconds for the reach to be global and appear in all the tabloids. Palos, however, is not so optimistic and concludes that, although they are important, "we do not want to dump too many expectations on the networks because today they offer us possibilities but tomorrow everything can change."
The majority of museums think differently, seeing networks as a “fundamental tool for connecting with the public. Especially with those who have difficulties physically visiting the museum”, as explained by the El Prado network team. The Madrid art gallery began its digital journeys in 2007 with YouTube and since then it has explored different platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram. Although the latter is the one that focuses its digital strategy, it must be said that they have grown a lot in the last year on TikTok, where they have more than 400,000 followers. "With this platform we are reaching a very young audience that discovers the Prado in a closer way and that helps to boost visits."
The idea, they insist, is "to develop initiatives that facilitate the approach to art for those interested but who perhaps do not have artistic knowledge." Other museums, such as El Moco, are also very active in networks but leave teaching aside to focus on creativity taken to another level. In the case of MACBA, Carla Ventosa, Director of Communication and Development, explains that they use them “to give voice to tasks that otherwise would not have visibility, such as the restoration of a work or the transport of a piece”. Regarding the ups and downs of Twitter, she admits that "what we have noticed are fluctuations in the number of users" but insists that "it is not a radical change and in other situations it could be due to algorithm changes." In addition to Twitter, the Barcelona museum is present on Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, Spotify, YouTube and Flickr.
“A museum has to be where society is and we currently spend a lot of time on the networks”, reasons the MACBA team, which, by the way, is verified by Twitter. This service, until now free in Spain, values messages from prominent and influential accounts. However, Musk announced that if an account wanted to have that blue check, they would have to pay $7.99. He launched it in some countries but had to back down when the identity of several users was usurped, such as Lebron James. Faced with such chaos, Twitter delayed the relaunch date to November 29. “It will be necessary to wait, but if it is finally mandatory to pay, we will have to do it so as not to lose notoriety and so that trolls do not invade us. Of course, it will entail expenses that most companies currently do not have”, concludes Agustín Paz.
