Gone are the days when radio and television were the only sources of media. Today, the scenario has drastically changed and social networking websites have remarkably emerged as an alternative media, a substitute to newspapers, magazines and television. Twitter,which is one of the most popular social networking website is a vibrant example of such an alternative type of media. This concept was the triggering point of inspiration of the Saudi author Thamer Adnan Shaker's latest book entitled ‘Here is Twitter'. Saudi Gazette met with the author Wednesday at the signing ceremony of his book at Virgin Megastore in Jeddah. SG: Can you please elaborate the captivating title of the book. Is there a specific reason for choosing such an intriguing name? Shaker: It is mere insinuations of the new wave of media resources especially the social networking available over the web. I chose this particular title because I have included some 80 articles or blogs which I have already posted over the net. I intentionally picked this eye-catching name because throughout this book, I wanted to address the new generation. SG: What do these 80 subjects deal with? What was your main inspiration behind them? Shaker: The subjects I have compiled are assorted and they in fact represent a ‘main forum' for the reader who can read pieces of written materials dealing with different current issues written in a straightforward and simple form rather than a narrative or fictional one. The articles I have collected after I posted them online deal with realistic and dynamic issues ranging from the problems the youth face, the late Arab spring of revolutions, some critical current political concerns, women's rights in the Kingdom and other interesting topics that concern our daily lives. SG: What message do you wish to convey to the community through this book? Shaker: I want to call upon the community and particularly the youth to spend more time reading useful things rather than just reading the sports or football news and wasting their time on useless activities. I think in order to achieve such a goal, an author should dig into the root cause of the matter and address the young generation regarding current issues using modern language. The book deals with three main concerns- how to strengthen loyalty among some young Saudis towards their country, self-development of youth and positive enthusiasm. SG: Do you believe that young readers are still interested in reading books in spite of the predominant trend of internet reading? Shaker: I know that many youngsters and adolescents prefer spending time surfing the web and reading blogs rather than reading a book. Therefore, I decided to compile internet posts in the form of printed book, which are available at reasonable price. Moreover, reading on the internet has some negative aspects because websites have countless articles on various subjects and this may distract the reader and make him unable to decide his priorities of subjects. Compiling some interesting subjects written in modern Arabic language in one book would be more useful and specific. I think reading a book is more interesting than ‘cyber reading'. SG: How many books have you written so far? Shaker: ‘Here is Twitter' is my fourth book. I have previously written three books, two novels and one poetry book. __
