TV Showrunners Talk Twitter

The Twitter hashtag is a powerful tool, allowing show runners for programs like #modernfamily, #community, and #bones to easily access viewer criticisms and feedback.

But the trick with all the 140-characters-on-characters-comments, per an excellent TheEnvelope.com item by Christy Grosz, is to find a balance. Though invaluable in many ways, hashtag streams also represent a relatively small, specific segment of the TV audience, aka “the noisy minority.” Steve Levitan says he doesn’t dive into Twitter nearly as as much as he did during the first season of Modern Family, while Bones creator Hart Hanson has moved on to reading only those that he directly follows:

“If you take everybody’s ideas–even if they’re all good–your show will turn to pudding,” Hanson says.

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