2-Way Tweeting Helps Louisiana Monitor Spill

Like a lot of other government agencies, Louisiana's emergency-preparedness office uses its Twitter feed to keep citizens updated on issues like the Gulf oil spill. In a neat twist, the office is following thousands of its own followers, "something that a lot of government agencies in the emergency area (and actually government agencies in any field) have been hesitant to do," John Solomon writes for the In Case of Emergency blog.

Followers tend to be "involved (and informed) citizens, activists or bloggers" interested in issues pertinent to the office's work, Solomon notes. Their tweets can even help the agency anticipate what reporters might ask. "Twitter is a snapshot of what people are thinking and talking about,” says a rep. “People are either talking about you or talking with you. We’d prefer to talk with you."
(More Gulf oil spill stories.)