Program enables the homeless to use Twitter
A program called Underheard in New York has provided prepaid cell phones to the homeless so they can use social media to help their voices be heard.
Danny (@putodanny), Derrick (@awitness2011), Albert (@albert814) and Carlos (@jessie550) are not typical Twitter users. What makes them unusual – in the world of social media, at least – is that they are homeless New Yorkers. They are able to access the internet 24/7 thanks to prepaid cell phones issued under a program called Underheard in New York. The program was founded by 3 interns at New York ad agency BBH which provided $1,000 towards the cost of the cell phones and service.
Since the start of the month, Danny, Derrick, Albert and Carlos have been sharing details of their lives with the world in updates of 140 characters or less:
The intention is to provide the homeless with a voice and to enable their stories to directly influence others. From the Underheard in New York FAQ:
“We think that getting their stories out there is important and useful, and we think one of the best ways for us- as Millennials who’ve grown up with social media- to help the homeless population is to help them be better heard and understood. Furthermore, we hope that we can inspire many people with the stories of these men to volunteer and donate supplies.”
While Underheard in New York is certainly an interesting concept, I have to wonder whether it’s really doing much to help the homeless. Sure, it’s enabling Danny, Derrick, Albert and Carlos to directly interact with their follows (each has about 2,000), but so what? Is this really going to do much to help either the tweeters or the homeless population in general? That said, I’m sure the bosses at BBH are delighted – the project earned the ad agency mentions by USA Today, the LA Times, Switched and Mashable (yeah, I know, I’m a real cynic!).
What do you think? Is this project worthwhile? Leave a comment and share your thoughts.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by WowCellPrepaid and UltraPrepaidCel, Carol Minarcik. Carol Minarcik said: Rhonda Callow Program enables the homeless to use Twitter http://bit.ly/eHavTq [...]
Homeless people are different. They don’t have much so they share more which is strange because the more people have the less they share. If a homeless man has 20 dollars he would share that with someone. Maybe it’s because they don’t actually earn it so easy come and go, maybe but they do have this other kind of world. Some are also conning others, they do have a home but they just pan handle to make a few extra dollars to have the extra things like alcohol. Some are there even if they come from affluent backgrounds because they got thrown out or shunned by their own family and community due to their drug problem. They know what they need to do to get out of that situation. Some just want to live in the moment and now and want to experience new things so they don’t care for the daily grind or waiting around for things. Some can enjoy things or find happiness in small things. Some are happy people and open. I suppose some do eventually lose their mind too as they live in a dangerous environement and they are exposed to violence at all time.
finds it a little strange that a homeless person has a prepaid phone with internet service…that gets pretty costly..that being said a homeless person has a hard enough time getting money for food that a phone is the least thing they would be paying for..I don’t believe it and it sounds more like a marketing scheme than anything..
they said the interns from the company fund the phones for them make shure you read the whole before you spout off. i think its a good idea.
Freedom of speech to the Nth degree, hopefully they won’t be moderated or censored because some one doesn’t want to hear it or some one has to be in control, to make themselves feel special.
lol….ye right
The tweets are genuinely refreshing and enlightening as they come from such a clandestine view.
However with that said, a corporate NY ad agency is behind this, bear that in mind. The headline reads “Program…” which is intended to make the driving force sound benevolent. Make no mistake the core motivation here is advertising dollars. Does a percentage of this advertising revenue lend toward eliminating homelessness?
I wonder, do you always see the cup half empty?
I really like this idea- I think it’s a really great way to promote attention to the homeless problem and I can only help this projects helps come up a with a better solution to the homeless problem than eating them- as some bumper stickers have stated. If this project accomplishes nothing more than contributing more tweets to the internet- it kind of failed.
The Homeless guy needs to get a job. The guy is lookin good with that scarf though.
Really- you think he haasn’t thought of that! Alot of people are without jobs, even those that have a greeat education. Don’t judge when you don’t know his story. Not ALL homeless are bums alot of these people had beautiful homes, nice cars and loving families at one time! Things happen that people like us could never imagine having to deal with. Have some compassion!
It’s nothing more than an ad campaign by an ad firm. There are no concrete plans.
Finally i can read something i wouldve said myself. many people dont catch the agendas on like…80 percent of stories.
nice catch rose.
The homeless really need to get a job – anyone ready to step up to the plate? to hire ms. or mr. Homeless. Doubtful. Lets see I’ve got a Sally Ann dress with a few spots on it, I look Sally Ann. I don’t go to hairdressers or do my nails and my confidence is pretty good for some companies. I can’t go with the girls for lunch or coffee breaks so I stay behind feeling once again set apart. I get smaller everyday in this life but not necessarily in my own. I mean really. It’s a start. It’s an idea.
did you went to university to write articles in this way?
It’s clear you did not attend university
And going to university means you’re smart? Some of the most educated people I know are self-taught….
All the “book-learning” out there doesn’t mean a hill of beans in most real-world situations. How much of your university education do you use daily? I’d suspect not that much. Especially with that ignorant comment you made – university is for the rich, not the poor.
Isn’t it sad that we degrade people who don’t have education, purely because they can’t afford it? Such a shame.
… get a few things straight first: a lot of Homeless aren’t looking for work, so stop the let’s get them into Society stuff. Yes they are needful, but let them tell you of what – don’t assume things, listen. They are complicated people who have made a choice as a result of Society’s unthinking pressures. Live and let live: empathy is their greatest first need. Thanks for listening.
(IMHO from being acquainted with a few locally.)
I like that!
nicely said.
I actually write and come up with ideas in my spare time and i wrote a concept for a Reality t.v. series called “second chance” which helps the homeless. i wont get into detail in fear of giving one of my brain child’s away. but i thought up this idea 2 years back thinking of a way to help those who are homeless and not content with their current situation and actually want a second chance to get one. it will benefit general companies and obviously a production company. not to mention the basic public reminding them that there are people out there who have( or have) had it worse off then them so cheer up. Regardless i dont have the credentials in the business to be heard so it wont come about. but people like to see the underdog get a shot and people love reality tv now a days, so i think it would hit off> thus creating steady stream of money enabling more lives to changed and the heart warming touch to the general public. An extreme home make over rendition if you will, but instead of a home its a life. F twitter.. this would actually give them the skill set and help them out with addiction to turn their life around( being that they would agree to sobering up and being tested n what not) anyways i fear if i go oni will give a lot away. so my point is NO i do not think this will help what so ever. Other then getting the fact out there that theres people who want to change and have just had bad luck and wallowed in self pity and what not.
How nice poor homeless people can have thier misery put on twitter it makes me sick we have people with no home . We are A sad country that we allow this to entertain us . I like this Chris idiot who thinks these people are full of self pity ,not all homeless are addicts some have lost thier jobs some have mental health problems and our goverment cuts all programs to help these people. There are whole families living in the street what the he.. is twitter going to do to help . It makes people feel better to say they like to be homeless they do not want help. Does any of you in judgement talk to homeless people, I think not. What a laugh the hollywood egos and the homeless on twitter.
Although this event may eventually help us to understand better the times and lives of homeless people in NY and other parts of the developed world however, to the best of my knowledge, it´s doing nothing concrete in terms of directly helping the needy. Instead of reaching its potentially beneficial intent, imaginary if you wish, of finding adequate resources to help the homeless, it is helping to increase the earnings of the company sponsoring this concept. In other words, as it´s almost always the case, the beneficiaries of this type of ideas are not the people that make them sustainable, I mean, in this case the homeless individuals who interchange patches of their lives on their internet-enabled cell phones and their fellow homeless men, but the “good guys” who give them the gadgets to exploit the situation. “Use the poor and disadvantaged for helping not them but yourself”, seems to be the cynically secret but shameless motto behind all these initiatives. On the other hand, instead of prizing the ideas of this company to the extent the media did, it should have used this opportunity to launch a dramatic and profound call of attention to all members of our society—particularly focusing on the individuals responsible for the existence of this type of senseless injustice in societies otherwise opulent by all measures—about the aberration it means the mere existence of homeless people in the so-called “developed world”. This was a fantastic, but missed, journalistic opportunity to remind us about the unsustainable status-quo into which we live, a situation into which we sublimate what should be our compassionate care towards the most vulnerable members of our society for the déjà-vu dreamlike disregard for the disadvantaged felt an followed by the masses; a condition into which we surrender our humanity to the mindless opinions of the lambs into which the media, our politicians, and our excessively materialistic society have converted all of us.
Very well said Jose. Good to see that someone gets it. Unless this twitter idea is actually benefiting those men directly with addressing their needs the sad fact is that its just a media spot grab. Which is ultimately the saddest and one of the most unhuman things, when did people become so selfish, so afraid of others, and unwilling to step up to the plate and make a difference they so passionately talk about is needed.
i think people replying to this are very rude, they don’t know there story and why there homeless some people aren’t as fortunate as others, and with todays economy there simply are not enough jobs for everyone, i think this is cool to give them a chance to speak there mind and give them a voice, it may give them hope and maybe even help rude people see there side and what they go through, idk just my opinion
I think this is a great way to promote the social problems involving the homeless. Yes the add agency gets a mention but why shouldn’t they? They came up with an idea and acted on it rathar than just paying for another add somewhere. If this idea inspires one person to volunteer or one job offer to an unemployed person then it is worth it!
even if this is an “ad company’s” way to get there name out there or if it doesn’t directly help the homeless, this story reminds every1 about the homeless, starts people thinking and talking about it, and when it comes down to it, that’s how problems are solved.
I’m really surprised, I didn’t expect these fellows to be so articulate….and they spell better than most high school students! I guess I’ve always associated homelessness with lack of education and lack of social understanding. Maybe there is some merit to this project(?).
Exactly Jo. I know a lot of people on welfare and it’s humbling. Here you don’t see the neatly dressed office crowd or the racing down the corridor of some University but people.
I’ve looked at life from both sides now, from up and down and still somehow, it’s life’s illusions I recall. Of course your not talking about those who have different values than the sheep but those addictive ones. I can never help but look beyond those to the big guys bringing bad stuff into our country. Into our schools and our grand children and our future.
What a bunch of crap!!!! Just what a homeless person needs, a cell phone!
Why don’t they put that money to GOOD use, and help them find a HOME!!????
Maybe help them get a job. I’ve never heard anything so ridiculous in all my life.
It’s true that many of them don’t want a job. I mean why would you want to fight impossible odds to get a job when the whole world is falling down around you. Their job is to keep themselves alive. Havn’t you noticed.
I myself was homeless with a drug problem for 3 yrs of my life,this came about after a long fight and horrible brake up with my ex wife.She lied in family court got friends and family to lie about me.I did come back to reality and start to work again and rebuild my life took 7yrs now a sucessfull bussiness owner with a great wife and family.So to all of you who think homeless are just bums give your prissyass head a shake and realize things happen in life that maybee one person may handle just fine another may not.AND TO ANYONE THAT HELPS THE HOMELESS OR HELED ME THANK YOU,TO THOSE WHO SPIT,HIT OR ABUSE THE HOMELESS YOU WILL ONEDAY MEET YOUR MAKER
Shawn
Let me start and say this,The 1st person who started making the comments he REALLY MAKE SENSE,JO KEEP IT UP i have nothing to add u took my words all the best to mr Homeless
Walk a mile in miseries shoes before making comments. Have any of you seen what has happened to the people of the military whose so called loving families and neighbors have turned their backs on them to let them live on the streets homeless?
No one is immune today from the stark horror of living out on the curb. It can happen to anyone; especially in these economic times. ANYONE.
Women are especially vulnerable – think about this; spending your life raising a family, working, putting all your income into a marriage helping to support the family home, etc. One day your spouse decides to have FUN with a friend, takes everything, drains bank accounts, the house is in default, you are unemployed, living in a small town with a bad economy, you have moved there a few years ago for his job – so no social ties, no family = NO Support system. SO – you rush to get a job, but have no money for mortgage, food, or move. You stretch out the few pennies you have, the curb is closing in —
Many men, women and children face this kind of compassion today. NOT EVERYONE IS CALLOUSED – but there are too many who believe only the uneducated can fall, or the mental challenged, or the addicts. NOT TRUE-talk to the military people coming back from Afghanistan, talk to the middle class people who were chopped from good jobs, talk to women and men who gave everything to their spouses only to find out that they were used, abused and cast out on the street.
Then THINK – COULD I BECOME A STATISTIC —POSSIBLE’ PROBABLE…COMPASSION for many is a self-centered interest.
hear hear!
Truth be told, I’m not to what extent our society can really help the homeless. There’s just not enough money to go around, not enough land, not enough jobs. That’s why we have homeless people; it’s not always possible to directly help everyone.
I see a jousting match here, between the people who are sympathetic to the homeless and the people who think they’re bums. You are both right. Many homeless people are looking and trying hard to build themselves up again. Many were richer once, many are victims of circumstance. But many are simply drug addicts (which can be remedied), some are lost souls with no wish to return and maybe the odd one really is a “bum”. That’s why I agree with bigjohnb and Kris, we need to listen to them (not just assume their intentions and needs) and help the ones actively trying to find homes, find homes.
Again, does society have enough resources to help everyone? Aren’t we socialistic enough already? I’m only 15, I don’t know much about the economy. But I do know that I get calls every week about donating to X-charity and you know, I can’t give to them all.
That said, I think this is a good idea. As beth said, if this idea inspires one person to volunteer or one job offer to an unemployed person, then it’s worth it.