Homeless People Shoot To Fame Through The Power Of Social Media
He's the penniless man with the golden voice and now he's finally found the Midas touch. For years, homeless Ted Williams has been forced to eke out a living begging on the roadside in Columbus, Ohio. But now the recovering alcoholic is set to transform his life after a passing camera crew captured his priceless asset - his voice.
The unlikely star was today besieged with job offers after the recording of his impossibly smooth tones spread like wildfire across the web. Some industry experts believe the chance encounter - and Mr Williams' incredible voice - could even make him a millionaire. In a 90-second clip filmed by a cameraman from the Columbus Dispatch newspaper, former radio announcer Mr Williams is seen asking for help at a junction of I71 on Houston Street in Columbus.
Homeless turn to Twitter for food, shelter - Plasschaert, who had lost her job and was on welfare, joined the social networking sphere one month before she knew she was losing the bedroom she rented. She started a blog called "Lost Awareness" in desperation when nonprofit agencies told her they couldn't help her out until she had actually lost her home, she said.
A homeless blogger from England recommended Plasschaert sign up for Twitter and search for homelessness-related hashtags, or topics, on that site.
Days before landing on the street, Plasschaert contacted a man who went by the handle @hardlynormal for advice on available services. That connection ultimately led to Plasschaert getting into her own subsidized studio apartment this year.
"It was purely social media that placed me. Absolutely and totally," she says.
