CNN’s Rick Sanchez has almost 90,000 followers on Twitter, making him one of the top TV news Tweeters in the US. His frequent posts are a mix of requests for feedback on the news, commentary and personal observations like this one yesterday:
i got to go slap on some make-up. be back in a jiff. hate this part.
I follow Rick, but I confess that I rarely read what he posts. Maybe that’s because there’s so little actual news in his feed. CBS’s Mark Knoller, on the other hand, is an essential read for me, providing a quick update on what’s happening at the White House every day.
It’s easy to find other national journalists who use Twitter by checking MuckRack, but many local stations are using the service, too.
Allison Watts, executive producer at WHAM-TV in Rochester, N.Y., calls herself a “Twittering Twit.” She posts updates on breaking news and says she often gets tips and feedback from Twitter users in her community.
Reporters at the station use Twitter from the field. Last week, Watts says that reporter Rachel Barnhart Tweeted from court on the sentencing of a former police officer convicted of hit-and-run.
In a span of 30 minutes and 40 tweets, she painted a detailed picture of what it was like in the courtroom. It included everything from emotional statements from family members to the judge’s decision.
Other local TV journalists using Twitter include reporter Jason DeRusha from WCCO-TV in Minneapolis and assignment editor Misty Montano from KCNC-TV in Denver. Who would you add to the list?
By the way, if there’s an online directory of local TV Tweeters, I haven’t found it yet. Let us know if you know of one.
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