Don't Leave Me, Baby is a digital poem created out of live social media data. Messages of emotional anguish and insecurity are sourced in real time from Twitter and matched with expressions of consolation and reassurance. Tears are wiped away as soon as they are shed; hearts are mended as soon as they are broken. In the data stream, our emotional evolution takes a great leap forward; the human psyche becomes a flawlessly resilient, self-correcting system. The work is part of a wider exploration of the emergent personality of the Internet and the possibilities of data-driven text by hybrid media artist Andrew Burrell and writer Chris Rodley.

Andrew Burrell is a contemporary arts practitioner with a history in real time 3d and interactive audio installation. He is exploring notions of self and narrative and the implications of virtual worlds, networked environments and artificial life systems upon identity. His networked projects in virtual environments have received international recognition. He holds a PhD from the University of Sydney. Chris Rodley is a writer for new and old media whose work is exploring emerging frontiers for the literary in networked environments. Recently, his focus has been on storytelling with real-time data in a series of media art collaborations with Andrew Burrell. Past projects include writing for web, television and live performance.