Twitterers eagerly await Obama VP decision so they can pass it on
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What good is it being the first to know something important if you can’t be the first to tell someone else?
With that in mind, Twitter users have been tweeting away with anticipation today of Barack Obama’s choice of a running mate. With the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee promising to let supporters and anyone else signing up on his website know first via text and e-mail messages whose name will join his on all those campaign buttons, people are poised to be the first to chirp about the news.
One user named newforms was awaiting ‘the twitter explosion that will happen once those text-messages from obama go out.’
Some users said they were following their Twitter feeds as a way to learn the news. ‘Simultaneously watching Twitter and CNN to see who wins the Obama VP scoop,’ pixelrn tweeted today.
EdRoberts wrote that he opted not to sign up for the Obama campaign alert. ‘It’ll saturate twitter within seconds anyway,’ he said.
By this afternoon, ‘Obama’ and ‘Obama’s VP’ were the top search topics on Twitter. For a while ...
... Rep. Chet Edwards, a little-known Texas Democrat who emerged Friday as a potential dark horse choice, was No. 4 on Twitter’s list of ‘trending topics.’
While waiting for the news, Twitter users offered their own speculation or exasperation.
‘Oh my God. Obama, announce already!’ wrote itafroma.
Some killed time by sending out fake messages about Obama’s choice, which we noted Thursday has become a popular online pastime in recent days.
‘Will the last person to get fake Obama’s veep text message please turn out the lights?’ Time magazine blogger Ana Marie Cox wrote on her Twitter feed.
The Obama announcement could be an interesting moment for Twitter. The micro-blogging site has become known for micro-fast distribution of major breaking news, such as the first reports of July’s Southern California earthquake.
But that was a surprising news development. Obama’s announcement is expected by Saturday. With so much anticipation on the site, tylerbreed wondered this afternoon, ‘Will Twitter crash 2 minutes after the Obama texts are sent?’
-- Jim Puzzanghera
