Twitter: daft name, extraordinary news resource – and hostage to fortune?

November 28, 2008

india-mumbai-shootings.jpg

Blade will remain unconvinced by Twitter’s name for a long time. But he is increasingly impressed by its capabilities.

As this story in the Guardian confirms, Twitter’s “Mumbai thread provided a stream of snippets, not all accurate, from observers on the ground, with details of casualties, sieges, gunfights, and even the suspected names of terrorists.”

Elsewhere, the point is made that the blogosphere yet again beat newspaper and magazine outlets to coverage of the tragedy unfolding in Mumbai.

But is there a price to pay for the rapidity with which the Web 2.0 world moves? Although Twitter was updated faster than TV networks, let alone those antediluvian entities known as newspapers, various threads were plain wrong.

What price a libel claim, if the wrong person is accused of being a terrorist?

Image: Punit Paranjpe/Reuters.

 

One Response to “Twitter: daft name, extraordinary news resource – and hostage to fortune?”

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The slow blogger takes it easy : Spada Professional Services PR Firm on November 28, 2008 at 2:48 pm

[...] Blade commended the rapidity with which Twitter covered the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. And, like many of those who work in the Web 2.0 space, Blade has been known to make a virtue of [...]

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Supreme Court on Twitter

February 6, 2012

Something remarkable happened today. Yes, the Supreme Court launched its Twitter feed. It even has a Twitter policy, one of caveats, disclaimers and little by way of illumination but regardless: who would have thought that the successor body to the House of Lords would stoop to engage with the world of tweets, hashtags and retweets?

We look forward to the day when court business will be conducted via Twitter. Meantime, check out this link for an excellent blog on the Supreme Court.

Not so right said Fred

February 2, 2012
fred hat

So Farewell, then, Sir Fred Goodwin.

Now you are just Fred.

Not Right Said Fred, but plain Fred.

The Forfeiture Committee did for you.

No one had heard of it before,

But Dave said it had to act, and it did.

Trouble is that no one knows what to think.

Is it ‘Alas, poor Fred‘,

Or ‘Hurray! Sir Fred is dead!’?

We don’t know.

Do you?

By A. Mob, aged 1,378 and a half.

London Goes AWOL

January 31, 2012
CNN

STOP PRESS:

Fed up with being stuck on the Thames in south-east England, London yesterday decided to move. In a dramatic gesture which augurs ill for the Olympics, the city upped sticks and relocated to East Anglia.

Lawyers were not consulted about the move, and the city’s precise motivation remains unclear. However, financiers fear that London’s decision is a sign that it wishes to downsize. Moreover, a source from London said: “We no longer want to be Britain’s seat of power. If the Scots can deregulate, why can’t we? East Anglia is a nice place where nothing happens. It’s time for a quiet life. Please respect our right to privacy.”

Elsewhere, Birmingham did not do anything, but Manchester was seen to be packing its bags. “There’s an opportunity for us,” said Manchester. “We can become London.”

East Anglia said: “We don’t mind. It’ll be refreshing to be associated with something other than fens and flatness.”

A cartologist at CNN, which broke the extraordinary news, was later fired.