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The power of Twitter

While a large percentage of tweets on Twitter might be inconsequential garbage, the power of Twitter should not be underestimated. The tweet, shown in a screenshot above, showed that in the age of the internet social media has the power to challenge the clout of corporations.

Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger's tweet links to an article from The Guardian, reporting that the paper had been gagged from reporting parliament. Twitterers sought out the reasons for the gag, and discovered that it was related to Trafigura, a company involved in dumping toxic waste in Africa. They then disseminated the relevant information online effectively nullifying the impact of the gag order. Rusbridger has a summary of what happened here.

Update: Also reported in the New York Times: Twitter and a Newspaper Untie a Gag Order.

Labels: media

posted by David @ 1:32 AM