Twittering the VP debate…a few notes
Liz Foreman October 3rd, 2008
Last night’s vice presidential debate was yet another example of how Twitter has become a great companion tool for live events, what few are left in this DVR-driven world.
I’m usually a multiple web browser tabs kind of girl, but I didn’t even bother checking out any live blogs (non-microblogs) during the debate. That would have slowed down my Twitter reading comprehension.
Finally, Twitter’s community aggregation election pages have too many speakers for my taste (and the lightning-speed scrolling makes my eyes hurt.) Instead, I spent the time tweeting with my buddies - most from real life. It’s like like having my friends over, but without having to buy so much beer.
What are your thoughts on the tweeting (or not tweeting) the debate?
7 Comments Add your own
1. Doug Perry | October 3rd, 2008 at 11:19 am
I’m all for the use of Twitter — but weren’t you essentially doing something that could have been accomplished in an AIM chat room? Or any chat room for that matter.
I’m guilty of doing the same thing. I spent the night in a forum chatting the debate up with my buddies. I got into bed around 11 p.m. and thought, “We probably could have done that on AIM.”
2. Warren Sukernek | October 3rd, 2008 at 11:44 am
As we’ve proven over the year, Twitter is THE online companion for live events. And it really adds to the enjoyment, learning, and interaction whether at a conference, watching a sporting event or the debates. I agree that Twitter’s community aggregation election pages are a victim of its own success and the scroll is way too fast (like a stock ticker). My solution has been to stay on twitter like you and watch/tweet with my own friends.
3. Chloe Sladden | October 3rd, 2008 at 12:01 pm
If you enjoyed using Twitter during the debates, I’d like to know what you think of the live, two-screen Twitter experience we’re creating at Current TV with Hack the Debate: http://www.current.com/debate
We’re overlaying tweets in real-time over the debates. Next one will be for the Presidential Town Hall debate on Tuesday, October 7th.
We’ve asked folks to use #current to signal that they are actively participating. Would value this community’s feedback.
4. Jason | October 3rd, 2008 at 6:07 pm
As a heavy Twitter user, I find live blogging to be a little annoying via Twitter. You have to filter through people’s tweets about an event to get to other stuff that’s inevitably mixed in.
I do think an online chat room is still the best forum for this– so you don’t irritate followers who have no opportunity to selectively opt out of what’s essentially live blogging.
5. TR @ WSB | October 5th, 2008 at 6:18 pm
The chat comment is funny - watching Twitter go by on the live-scrolling screen reminded me of nothing so much as IRC, from the one time I spent a couple hours looking at/participating in an IRC chat - I think New Year’s Eve sometime in the mid-’90s.
Other thing - Twitter appeared to be lagging in the vpdebate “channel” (pardon me if that’s not the right term) — I went away for a bit, came back and wondered why I was seeing tweets that seemed to refer to a section of the debate from 10 to 15 minutes earlier. Guess that’s unavoidable; some of the participants commented on it as well, but it eventually took away some of the value. Maybe they can offer different speeds for the viewer - slow, fast, ultrafast, ultramegafast …
6. movie fan | October 10th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
the GOP wouldn’t dare schedule any more unscripted air time for Palin, this would give people more time to realize that she’s totally clueless… the prospect of her becoming the Commander in Chief is frightening
7. Anonymous | October 12th, 2008 at 5:45 pm
What is the most frightening are the total out to lunch bunch that have forgotten McCain is even running or seen to hope he’ll die the day after the inauguration!
AUUUUUUUUGH! Your dog KISSED ME, Charlie Brown!
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