Twitter says ‘Lean On Me’ to Australian Journalists

On a recent Google mission to see how badly my name could be portrayed through the search engine I found an article from the Courier Mail with my name splashed about on it:

This is not the first time Anna Bligh has been caught out deleting messages on Twitter.

The premier was in Mt Isa on March 5 and tweeted: “I’m in Mt Isa. It’s looking very green and the river is flowing”.

Bemused Twitter user Joshua Withers replied: “which Mount Isa are you at?”

Without acknowledging Mr Withers or referencing her previous tweet, Ms Bligh deleted the first message and posted a second , identical except for the words “and the river is flowing”

The Logies this year once again proved to be a fruitful place for Twitterers and Journalists alike, quoting Rove McManus from his Twitter

Congratulations twitter logie tweeters. You are now thinking for and writing all material for the Australian media. I’d ask for a cheque

It’s true that Twitter is a collective report on the state of the world today, well the state of the world of those that post to the service. But are the posts there to be reported on? Are journalists cheating or being lazy by doing a quick Twitter Search?

Or is your and my twitter feed there for the masses, unprotected and as such open to the media to use as well?

This same debate could rage over your Facebook or blog as well. My only argument for this abuse of public information is that sometimes it’s the only way I would find something out. In this light am I expecting to much of the media today to actually drive to the scene of a crime or accident and take their own photo instead of taking it off Twitpic?