The Hashtag's Rise and Fall: How a Punctuation Mark Changed Online Conversation
In August 2007, tech consultant Chris Messina proposed using the pound sign (#) on Twitter to group conversations, inadvertently inventing the modern hashtag. Initially disliked by Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, the hashtag quickly became a global tool for real-time discussion, citizen journalism, and political organizing. It enabled movements like #BlackLivesMatter and #MeToo, but also fueled harassment and echo chambers. By the 2020s, algorithmic feeds and overuse by marketers diminished its power. The article, part of Smithsonian's 'America at 250' series, traces the hashtag's trajectory from a niche idea to a ubiquitous yet declining feature of social media.
Key facts
- Chris Messina proposed the hashtag on Twitter on August 3, 2007.
- Twitter co-founder Biz Stone disliked the hashtag, calling it 'ugly'.
- The #sandiegofire hashtag in 2007 demonstrated its utility for citizen journalism.
- Hashtags were used in political movements like #OccupyWallStreet and #BlackLivesMatter.
- #MeToo was coined by Tarana Burke and spread via hashtag.
- Scrabble added 'hashtag' as a playable word in 2014.
- Oxford English Dictionary added 'hashtag' in 2014.
- Twitter was rebranded as X in 2022, and the blue bird logo was retired.
- At its peak in 2022, Twitter had about 370 million users.
- Hashtags lost influence due to algorithmic feeds and overuse by marketers.
Entities
Artists
- Chris Messina
- Biz Stone
- Jean Burgess
- Gretchen McCulloch
- Andre Brock
- Tarana Burke
- Richard Dawkins
- Daniel Dennett
- Kotryna Žukauskaitė
- Clive Thompson
- Tom Igoe
- Ted Scheinman
Institutions
- Smithsonian magazine
- Queensland University of Technology
- Georgia Tech
- Oxford English Dictionary
- Scrabble
- New York Times Magazine
- Wired
- eBaum's World
- Something Awful
Locations
- San Diego
- United States
- Australia
- Iran
- New York City