June 25, 2009 Facebook out-Twitters Twitter with new publishing controls Play video

(NECN: Ted McEnroe) - Used to be that when people asked me the difference between Facebook status updates and tweets on Twitter, I could tell them, "Your Facebook updates just go to your friends - but your tweets can reach people you don't know."

Not anymore.

Facebook has rolled out a new Beta version of its Publisher tool that let you make your status updates visible to the world - and that's just the start of it. The new tool, currently only available to people who are willing to make their status and profile visible to everyone, actually lets you target your updates to groups ranging from "everyone" to "friends and networks" to "friends" to small groups within your friends.

And this, I think, is the actual leg up Facebook has for most users. The new feature will let you post status updates visible only to specific groups of your friends - so, for example - you have friend Facebook friends. You have work Facebook friends, like that awkward moment when maybe your boss decided to friend you on Facebook. (My boss is WELCOME to be my friend. I have nothing to hide. But you know what I mean.) You can send updates to specific groups, so maybe those work friends don't get to see that you're really psyched to go to a late night show when you have work at 7:30am. Or your ex-boyfriend or girlfriend doesn't get to read up on your current dating activities.

You get the idea.

It's actually part

of an effort to give users more control over their own data - something that the company has been making a priority in recent months. If you haven't been to your Facebook settings section you may not realize the level of control you have over who sees your profile, photos, videos, and more. It does take some time to set up, but it's worth your while.

That said, does this mean Twitter is dead? No. In some ways, Facebook can be a victim of the amount that you post on the site - most users may not see the benefit of being able to post their updates to the world, especially if they have other information (posts of their kids, etc.) that they don't want to share. Twitter, because it contains only a small amount of personal information in your profile, lets you reach out to people you don't know as well without risking too much of your identity.

In my mind? There's room for both.