Table: twitter_user_following - Query Twitter User Followings using SQL

Twitter User Following is a feature within Twitter that allows a user to follow other Twitter users, thereby receiving their tweets and updates. It is a way for users to curate their Twitter feed based on their interests and preferences. This feature forms a fundamental part of the Twitter social media platform, enabling user interaction and engagement.

Table Usage Guide

The twitter_user_following table provides insights into the users that a specific Twitter user is following. As a Social Media Analyst, explore user-specific details through this table, including the list of users they follow, their interests, and their engagement. Utilize it to understand user behavior, their preferences, and to create targeted marketing strategies.

Important Notes

The user_id field must be set in the where clause.

Examples

List the follows for a user

Discover the segments that a specific user is following on Twitter, providing insights into their interests and affiliations. This can be useful for social media analysis and targeted marketing strategies.

select
  *
from
  twitter_user_following
where
  user_id = '1318177503995985921';
-- @steampipeio

select
  *
from
  twitter_user_following
where
  user_id = '1318177503995985921';
-- @steampipeio

List follows by username

Discover the segments that are followed by a specific Twitter user, enabling you to gain insights into their interests and connections. This could be beneficial in understanding their network and potential influence. Via subselect:

select
  uf.id,
  uf.username
from
  twitter_user_following as uf
where
  uf.user_id in (
    select
      id
    from
      twitter_user
    where
      username = 'steampipeio'
  );

select
  uf.id,
  uf.username
from
  twitter_user_following as uf
where
  uf.user_id in (
    select
      id
    from
      twitter_user
    where
      username = 'steampipeio'
  );

Find all users followed by both turbothq and nathanwallace

Discover the shared connections between two specific Twitter users to understand their common interests or potential collaborations. This can be beneficial in social media analysis or targeted marketing strategies.

select
  id,
  username
from
  twitter_user_following
where
  user_id in (
    select
      id
    from
      twitter_user
    where
      username = 'turbothq'
  );
intersect
select
  id,
  username
from
  twitter_user_following
where
  user_id in (
    select
      id
    from
      twitter_user
    where
      username = 'nathanwallace'
  );

select
  id,
  username
from
  twitter_user_following
where
  user_id in (
    select
      id
    from
      twitter_user
    where
      username = 'turbothq'
  )
union
select
  id,
  username
from
  twitter_user_following
where
  user_id in (
    select
      id
    from
      twitter_user
    where
      username = 'nathanwallace'
  );

Find users who follow you, but you don't follow them

Discover the segments of your Twitter audience that follow your account, but whom you have not followed back. This can be useful for identifying potential influencers or key accounts to engage with for networking and community-building purposes.

with account as (
  select
    id
  from
    twitter_user
  where
    username = 'turbothq'
),
following as (
  select
    id,
    username
  from
    twitter_user_following
  where
    user_id in (
      select
        id
      from
        account
    )
),
followers as (
  select
    id,
    username
  from
    twitter_user_follower
  where
    user_id in (
      select
        id
      from
        account
    )
)
select
  username
from
  followers
where
  username not in (
    select
      username
    from
      following
  )
order by
  username;

with account as (
  select
    id
  from
    twitter_user
  where
    username = 'turbothq'
),
following as (
  select
    id,
    username
  from
    twitter_user_following
  where
    user_id in (
      select
        id
      from
        account
    )
),
followers as (
  select
    id,
    username
  from
    twitter_user_follower
  where
    user_id in (
      select
        id
      from
        account
    )
)
select
  username
from
  followers
where
  username not in (
    select
      username
    from
      following
  )
order by
  username;

Schema for twitter_user_following

Name	Type	Operators	Description
_ctx	jsonb		Steampipe context in JSON form.
created_at	timestamp with time zone		The UTC datetime that the user account was created on Twitter.
description	text		The text of this user's profile description (also known as bio), if the user provided one.
entities	jsonb		Entities are JSON objects that provide additional information about hashtags, urls, user mentions, and cashtags associated with the description.
id	text		The unique identifier of this user.
location	text		The location specified in the user's profile, if the user provided one. As this is a freeform value, it may not indicate a valid location, but it may be fuzzily evaluated when performing searches with location queries.
name	text		The name of the user, as they’ve defined it on their profile. Not necessarily a person’s name.
pinned_tweet	jsonb		Contains withholding details for withheld content, if applicable.
pinned_tweet_id	text		Unique identifier of this user's pinned Tweet.
profile_image_url	text		The URL to the profile image for this user, as shown on the user's profile.
protected	text		Indicates if this user has chosen to protect their Tweets (in other words, if this user's Tweets are private).
public_metrics	jsonb		Contains details about activity for this user.
sp_connection_name	text	=, !=, ~~, ~~, !~~, !~~	Steampipe connection name.
sp_ctx	jsonb		Steampipe context in JSON form.
url	text		The URL specified in the user's profile, if present.
user_id	text	=	ID of the user who is followed by these users.
username	text		The Twitter screen name, handle, or alias that this user identifies themselves with. Usernames are unique but subject to change.
verified	boolean		Indicates if this user is a verified Twitter User.
withheld	jsonb		Contains withholding details for withheld content, if applicable.

Export

This table is available as a standalone Exporter CLI. Steampipe exporters are stand-alone binaries that allow you to extract data using Steampipe plugins without a database.

You can download the tarball for your platform from the Releases page, but it is simplest to install them with the steampipe_export_installer.sh script:

/bin/sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://steampipe.io/install/export.sh)" -- twitter

You can pass the configuration to the command with the --config argument:

steampipe_export_twitter --config '<your_config>' twitter_user_following