PWR2 Webby Runner-Up The Hashtag: Digital Intonations #languageempowerment #evolutionofcommunication

Still to this day, I’m not really sure how I feel about Twitter #doubt #uneasiness

In some ways it seems like it’s an amazing outlet for self-expression and an innovative communicatory tool #thanksJackDoresy

And other times it seems like it contributes to the way technology limits the way we articulate our thoughts #soundslikeOrwell’s1984

On top of that, I feel like it only furthers the desire to depend and worry about how other people view us #IthoughtHighSchoolWasOver

Regardless of how I see Twitter, there is one amazing idea that is revolutionizing digital communication #hashtag

The hashtag is a godsend in a world where intonations and gestures are impossible to convey through text #communicativeconfusion

Emoticons try, but fall short #theonlypeoplethatlikethemarehighschoolgirlsandflirtyguys

A variety of other different nuances don’t really translate over text #goodbyeSarcasm

And phrases like LOL no longer legitimately express reactions like laughter #hopefullyitgetsphasedoutsoon

Then comes hashtag to the rescue #6wordstories

It allows you to put a concept or idea at the end of a sentence #likethis

While this isn’t necessarily its primary use, it is quickly becoming a tool of expression #theElectronicElixarToOurProblems

By finishing a sentence with an intended concept, the reader can more easily determine what the sender meant #re-empoweringlanguage

Also characteristics like the length of the hashtag imply tones #longonesoftenaccompanyjokes #shortISserious

While the mechanisms for how they are used are apt to change and vary #similarlytogestures

Slowly norms will probably form to stabilize something like a hashtag language #WooHooStability

The fact that communities like Twitter draw from such a large base will probably create a more static use #technologyshrinkstheworld

Different uses of hashtags and simply their presence empower the sender #pwrtotheppl

Hashtags are a variable that can give the same set of words different meanings #morecombinationsbetterselfexpression

The specifics of hashtag intonations are still in the “developmental” stages and still have a while before they become e-tones #BetaTesting

But I believe that if not solving the problem itself, hashtags are beginning the movement towards bringing depth to text #humaninnovation

(And yes all of these are legitimate tweet lengths, I had to check several of them, and it took surprisingly long for how concise they are #HemmingwayProblems)

-Phillip Nazarian