In this article Derek Thompson, senior editor at The Atlantic, outlines the nine ways twitter could fail, according to what the company itself has suggested as its own shortcomings. Thompson starts out by backing up this claim when he attests that Twitter has recently filed paperwork to become a public company, filling an IPO which will only increase the risks that could destroy it. He exemplifies this risk by portraying the erratic step Facebook took when it chose to file an IPO and how it "famously misled" its investors. Thompson continues his article by listing the significant risks that twitter has confessed to have taken when taking this step. The first of these is the question of whether or not there will still be a growth in the application's use. Thompson explains that there has been a lack of growth in the use of Twitter which is being outcompeted by other social network companies. The second of these is whether the company will be able to generate the money it needs to support itself, this pressing issues is being brought up by the lack of validity of their promoted products. Several of these other issues take into consideration the company at a global scale, where the company's product, Twitter, may not be successful in other countries or may be censored by international governments. Several of these risks involve a failure in the company itself, both when it comes to its software and when it comes to the revenue it can sustain without much expansion. The major fall-out this company foresees as a major problem to its own growth is its capability to foil its plans by their own means. An example of this is stated by Thompson as, "a breach or massive screw-up that loses the trust of marginal uses and devastates growth." Thompson ends his article by describing how Twitter itself has rigged 'bombs' which may determine the future of the company based solely on their own performance and choices.
In this article Thompson relies heavily on Twitter's IPO document, basing his arguments and assumptions based on the document itself. Although true and applicable to several other corporations, the evidence given is vague, poorly supported, and relies heavily on the reader's knowledge of the financial market. His main purpose in writing this article is to inform rather than argue, where although he does reveal the risks the company will face, he only explains these risks. His portrayal of the company reflects a very biased aspect of the choice the company made to file an IPO. The article generates a condescending and judgmental tone, seemingly criticizing the choice Twitter has made. Thompson does rely on some quotes from the company itself, yet relies most heavily on the IPO document. This article does not cover all the casualties of the affair, nor does it interpret what it how it will affect the company in the long-run. The style of writing he uses is simplistic and easy to follow for the most part, yet there are a few sentences which may be wordy or even confusing. These sentences are distracting and may even lose the reader completely, leading them to miss the point of the article. The article has a limited flow to it, the different risks he describes are referred to on and off, creating a choppy article. Furthermore, the image used in the article is effective to some extent, it shows the design of the application while also gives a brief image of what can be expected in the article. The image also stands as a testament to the validity of what Thompson will portray in his article. The article does follow a defined thesis, each point being connected to the thesis and provides a supporting a structure for the article, yet it assumes that the reader has or will read the IPO filed by the company. Overall this article may be convincing and informative, yet it leaves the reader no further from where he began, nor does it clearly show what is to be expected from the company.
http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/10/the-9-ways-that-twitter-could-fail-according-to-twitter/280264/
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