The politicians on
Twitter -- that trendy micro-blogging service -- get free reign to speak directly to their constituents without being filtered by handlers, all in 140 characters or less.
It seems like a deliciously easy tool for policy-makers bred on the sound-bite.
However, there are a few head-scratchers when it comes to the local politicians on Twitter. For one, St. Louis mayoral candidate
Irene J. Smith follows lots of people and also has a subordinate account run by one of her aides. This is just confusing, honestly. Will the real Irene please stand up?
Her opponent,
Mayor Francis Slay, has that
blog he updates, but no Twitter account.
On the national stage, you've got U.S. Representative
Roy Blunt and U.S. Senator
Claire McCaskill (
who shows her love of Mizzou basketball with the service) but no sign of Senator
Kit Bond.
And perhaps most bizarre,
Karl Rove started following
this very alt weekly's Twitter feed back on February 4. Which is great, because now we can read updates and view photos of
him hunting.
Politicians
have always looked for microphones, soap boxes and street corners from
which to grandstand. Twitter allows them to bloviate on their
BlackBerrys.
Below is an abbreviated list of St. Louis and/or Missouri Twitterererers.
Anyone else -- political or otherwise -- we should be watching? Post your suggestions in the comments field or
drop me a line.