[LINK] The Guardian (sensibly) moves to Twitter...

Wed Apr 1 14:34:23 AEDT 2009

Ivan Trundle wrote:
> (From The Guardian today...)
> 

and today's date?

> • Newspaper to be available only on messaging service
> 
> • Experts say any story can be told in 140 characters
> 
> Consolidating its position at the cutting edge of new media  
> technology, the Guardian today announces that it will become the first  
> newspaper in the world to be published exclusively via Twitter, the  
> sensationally popular social networking service that has transformed  
> online communication.
> 
> The move, described as "epochal" by media commentators, will see all  
> Guardian content tailored to fit the format of Twitter's brief text  
> messages, known as "tweets", which are limited to 140 characters each.  
> Boosted by the involvement of celebrity "twitterers", such as Madonna,  
> Britney Spears and Stephen Fry, Twitter's profile has surged in recent  
> months, attracting more than 5m users who send, read and reply to  
> tweets via the web or their mobile phones.
> 
> As a Twitter-only publication, the Guardian will be able to harness  
> the unprecedented newsgathering power of the service, demonstrated  
> recently when a passenger on a plane that crashed outside Denver was  
> able to send real-time updates on the story as it developed, as did  
> those witnessing an emergency landing on New York's Hudson River. It  
> has also radically democratised news publishing, enabling anyone with  
> an internet connection to tell the world when they are feeling sad, or  
> thinking about having a cup of tea.
> 
> "[Celebrated Guardian editor] CP Scott would have warmly endorsed this  
> - his well-known observation 'Comment is free but facts are sacred' is  
> only 36 characters long," a spokesman said in a tweet that was itself  
> only 135 characters long.
> 
> A mammoth project is also under way to rewrite the whole of the  
> newspaper's archive, stretching back to 1821, in the form of tweets.  
> Major stories already completed include "1832 Reform Act gives voting  
> rights to one in five adult males yay!!!"; "OMG Hitler invades Poland,  
> allies declare war see tinyurl.com/b5x6e for more"; and "JFK  
> assassin8d @ Dallas, def. heard second gunshot from grassy knoll WTF?"
> 
> Sceptics have expressed concerns that 140 characters may be  
> insufficient to capture the full breadth of meaningful human activity,  
> but social media experts say the spread of Twitter encourages brevity,  
> and that it ought to be possible to convey the gist of any message in  
> a tweet.
> 
> For example, Martin Luther King's legendary 1963 speech on the steps  
> of the Lincoln memorial appears in the Guardian's Twitterised archive  
> as "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a  
> nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but  
> by", eliminating the waffle and bluster of the original.
> 
> At a time of unprecedented challenge for all print media, many  
> publications have rushed to embrace social networking technologies.  
> Most now offer Twitter feeds of major breaking news headlines, while  
> the Daily Mail recently pioneered an iPhone application providing  
> users with a one-click facility for reporting suspicious behaviour by  
> migrants or gays. "In the new media environment, readers want short  
> and punchy coverage, while the interactive possibilities of Twitter  
> promise to transform th," the online media guru Jeff Jarvis said in a  
> tweet yesterday, before reaching his 140-character limit, which  
> includes spaces. According to subsequent reports, he is thinking about  
> going to the theatre tonight, but it is raining :(.
> 
> A unique collaboration between The Guardian and Twitter will also see  
> the launch of Gutter, an experimental service designed to filter  
> noteworthy liberal opinion from the cacophony of Twitter updates.  
> Gutter members will be able to use the service to comment on liberal  
> blogs around the web via a new tool, specially developed with the  
> blogging platform WordPress, entitled GutterPress.
> 
> Currently, 17.8% of all Twitter traffic in the United Kingdom consists  
> of status updates from Stephen Fry, whose reliably jolly tone, whether  
> trapped in a lift or eating a scrumptious tart, has won him thousands  
> of fans. A further 11% is made up of his 363,000 followers replying  
> "@stephenfry LOL!", "@stephenfry EXACTLY the same thing happened to  
> me", and "@stephenfry Meanwhile, I am making myself an omelette!  
> Delicious!"
> 
> According to unconfirmed rumours, Jim Buckmaster, the chief executive  
> of Craigslist, will next month announce plans for a new system of  
> telepathy-based social networking that is expected to render Twitter  
> obsolete within weeks.
> 
>  From the archive
> Highlights from the Guardian's Twitterised news archive
> 
> 1927
> OMG first successful transatlantic air flight wow, pretty cool! Boring  
> day
> otherwise *sigh*
> 
> 1940
> W Churchill giving speech NOW - "we shall fight on the beaches ... we  
> shall never surrender" check YouTube later for the rest
> 
> 1961
> Listening 2 new band "The Beatles"
> 
> 1989
> Berlin Wall falls! Majority view of Twitterers = it's a historic  
> moment! What do you think??? Have your say
> 
> 1997
> RT at mohammedalfayed: FYI NeilHamilton, Harrods boss offering £££ 4  
> questions in House of Commons! Check it out
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> iT
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