Tweet No More

This just in: Twitter has been banned from office computers in the Massachusetts Legislature! The Legislative Information Services department said the decision to block Twitter is due to the site’s vulnerability to viruses. However, the ban only applies to computers in legislative offices, so members of the legislature can still tweet from smart phones. Interestingly, the governor and his staff are not prohibited from accessing Twitter on their office computers.

Elected officials across the country are using twitter to create their own content and communicate directly with constituents. Sarah Scalese, spokeswoman for the Massachusetts House Minority Leader pointed out that, "Republicans [in Massachusetts] don't always get face time on TV...We need to utilize every available resource possible."

The debate over whether or not to tweet goes far beyond Massachusetts. Many on Capitol Hill have embraced the new social media tool, and TweetCongress allows you to search for the Twitter handles of your Congressional representatives. In addition to supplying information on who is and isn't tweeting, TweetCongress encourages more members of Congress to use Twitter to better communicate with the people they represent.

If your representatives were on Twitter, would you follow them?

(Image Source)

Share