There are many reasons to Twitter which I have chronicled on this blog.
But today was a perfect example. When the Southern California earthquake hit today at approximately 11:41 (Twitter) or 11:42 (CNN) Twitter was buzzing like crazy. I had numerous reports from numerous sources of the quake almost before it ended.
And when the phone lines wouldn’t work, it was Twitter that allowed my wife and I, as well as other family members and friends connect to make sure everyone was okay.
Great tool. And no matter what complaints people levy against Twitter’s latest technical problems, it’s days like these that make you thankful for Twitter.
UPDATE:
Twitter beats the AP and other new sources by 4-9 minutes. Gees…how slow is the MSM.
Sort of reminds me of churches, church staffs and denominations that put out “official” news days, weeks and months after everyone else knows about it.
Why aren’t you on Twitter?
Exactly!
http://chumdinger.wordpress.com/2008/07/29/earthquake-and-technology/
I was praying for you and your family as the earthquake happened because of Twitter. Pretty cool!
Chum: Great post on your site. Love the Twitter screen shot….it’s amazing to get so many perspectives on one event.
John: Thanks for the prayers, I appreciate it. I’ve noticed that when a prayer comes up on Twitter how great a reminder it is to stop what you are doing and pray for that person.
rhett
So… do you have to have a lot of friends on twitter for it to really work?
DON’T LEAVEEEEE!
okay, I’m done whining. But seriously, don’t.
That is monumental that twitter got ahold of the earthquake news before cnn could report it. i feel like all these years you’ve been saying “new media will change the world” and most people were like “psssh. that’s just silly.” and now you have the total right to smile and nod and say i told you so
How was twitter any different than texting or emailing your wife/friends? I guess it’s public, so you can tell everyone “i’m ok” at once. My experience is that everyone just says “EARTHQUAAKKKE” which doesn’t really provide me much detail. I’d like to MSM use a twitter to get quick details out immediately, and then give more detailed reports on their own site.
90+% of my contacts are on facebook, but very few are on twitter. Wouldn’t it be great if facebook status updates had the same functionality/usage as twitter? (replies, etc) I feel like it would quickly become much more engaging for me, although rather distracting too.
BTW, congrats on church.alltop.com!
How was twitter any different than texting or emailing your wife/friends? I guess it’s public, so you can tell everyone “i’m ok” at once. My experience is that everyone just says “EARTHQUAAKKKE” which doesn’t really provide me much detail. I’d like to MSM use a twitter to get quick details out immediately, and then give more detailed reports on their own site.
90+% of my contacts are on facebook, but very few are on twitter. Wouldn’t it be great if facebook status updates had the same functionality/usage as twitter? (replies, etc) I feel like it would quickly become much more engaging for me, although rather distracting too.
BTW, congrats on church.alltop.com!
The applications are endless! Love the blog Rhett. Just found you on alltop.
The applications are endless! Love the blog Rhett. Just found you on alltop.