Twitterers eagerly await Obama VP decision so they can pass it on
What good is it being the first to know something important if you can’t be the first to tell someone else?
With that in mind, Twitter users have been tweeting away with anticipation today of Barack Obama's choice of a running mate. With the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee promising to let supporters and anyone else signing up on his website know first via text and e-mail messages whose name will join his on all those campaign buttons, people are poised to be the first to chirp about the news.
One user named newforms was awaiting "the twitter explosion that will happen once those text-messages from obama go out."
Some users said they were following their Twitter feeds as a way to learn the news. "Simultaneously watching Twitter and CNN to see who wins the Obama VP scoop," pixelrn tweeted today.
EdRoberts wrote that he opted not to sign up for the Obama campaign alert. "It'll saturate twitter within seconds anyway," he said.
By this afternoon, "Obama" and "Obama's VP" were the top search topics on Twitter. For a while ...
... Rep. Chet Edwards, a little-known Texas Democrat who emerged Friday as a potential dark horse choice, was No. 4 on Twitter's list of "trending topics."
While waiting for the news, Twitter users offered their own speculation or exasperation.
"Oh my God. Obama, announce already!" wrote itafroma.
Some killed time by sending out fake messages about Obama's choice, which we noted Thursday has become a popular online pastime in recent days.
"Will the last person to get fake Obama's veep text message please turn out the lights?" Time magazine blogger Ana Marie Cox wrote on her Twitter feed.
The Obama announcement could be an interesting moment for Twitter. The micro-blogging site has become known for micro-fast distribution of major breaking news, such as the first reports of July's Southern California earthquake.
But that was a surprising news development. Obama's announcement is expected by Saturday. With so much anticipation on the site, tylerbreed wondered this afternoon, "Will Twitter crash 2 minutes after the Obama texts are sent?"
-- Jim Puzzanghera
Photo: Obama campaign buttons. Credit: Ciltis via Flickr
It's Tony Blair
Posted by: Alan Marshall | August 22, 2008 at 06:12 PM
I hope I was the first to tweet Obama's VP pick:
http://twitter.com/amuse/statuses/896216433
Posted by: Alexander Muse | August 22, 2008 at 09:04 PM
So it just turned out to be a cheap trick to harvest numbers and play with our emotions: I work on using Web 2.0 for serious gov. concerns, not waking people with a text message at 3:14 EDT. In my book, you blew it big time, Barack!
Posted by: W. David Stephenson | August 23, 2008 at 12:52 AM
1st tweets timeline of VP choice, with chart... http://tweetip.us/lk5ip
Posted by: tweetip | August 23, 2008 at 01:51 AM
I found out from a Barack Obama campaign email update early this morning...
Posted by: Beth B. | August 23, 2008 at 02:11 PM
More buttons coming in about 10 days!
http://claireiltis.com
Posted by: Claire Iltis | August 23, 2008 at 04:36 PM