Michigan star quarterback Denard Robinson endured a pretty brutal Twitter hacking this week by an ex-girlfriend. The hacker, suspected to be user @HelloImCourtnee, scolded Robinson for his infidelity and posed questions to his followers about his character. This is a pretty unusually hacking situation for a big time athlete, whose accounts tend to be hacked by disgruntled fans. Many professional athletes have also gotten themselves in trouble with their leagues, including the NFL and MLS, for tweeting during games or unofficially releasing starting lineups prior to game day.
Michigan’s Quarterback Gets Public Reprimand From His Ex-Girlfriend via his own Twitter Account
Tweet Speaker: the Hottest New Twitter App!
Tweet speaker is the neatest new Twitter app out there, designed by App Cubby. App Cubby was founded in 2008 with a mission to create “elegant, easy to use applications for the iPhone. They seem to have accomplished just that with Tweet Speaker, which is software carefully designed and programmed to read your Tweets out loud. Users report that this seemingly simple app is actually quite impressive with its savvy for Twitter lingo and user-friendly layout. This nifty new app is also great for care-safe Twitter updates and even for convenient updates during your morning shower!
A Presidential Debate On Twitter?
If you thought it was funny that President Obama hosted a Twitter town hall or that Vice President Joe Biden started a Twitter account, you aint seen nothin’ yet! Word has just been released that all presidential candidates for the 2012 election (excluding Mitt Romney) will participate in a Twitter-based presidential debate. The debate is being organized by TeaParty.net and will be moderated by FOX News. This groundbreaking move towards social media by politicians will allow American citizens across the nation to directly interject questions into the presidential debate. This will certainly be a sight to see..
U.S./ Japan World Cup Heartbreaker Breaks Twitter Record!
The women’s World Cup final was not just an international television phenomenon, but a Twitter record breaker too! The new record-breaking tweet rate of 7,196 tweets per second surpassed Osama bin Laden’s death and the royal wedding! The heartbreaking game ended with Japan defeating the United States in penalty shots for their first victory over the US in women’s soccer history. The match between Paraguay and Brazil later that day, elicited almost as much Twitter love with 7,166 tweets released per second.
Bette Midler Accuses Gaga of Performance-Stealing
Bette Midler publicly called out Lady Gaga over Twitter this week after Gaga performed in a wheelchair during her Australian tour. In 1980, Midler gave her famous “Mermaid in a Wheelchair” performance, which she feels Gaga copied. One of a few hostile tweets from Midler read “Dear @ladygaga if you think a mermaid in a wheelchair seems familiar-it’s because it is! You can see it on youtube 24/7 with ME performing it.” Although Gaga did not respond publicly to the taunting, the performers seem to have made amends, as Midler most recently tweeted “@ladygaga let’s drink over this at the Emmy’s in September. Fabulous mermaids can coexist!”
Paula Abdul Blows Off Steam on Twitter
Well-known actress, artist, dancer, and television personality Paula Abdul issued an unexpectedly bold tweet this week following Japan’s victory over the United States in the World Cup. According to Abdul, a lot of rude comments were made regarding the Japanese players, prompting her to issue a strict warning to those providing the criticism. Many were surprised by Abdul’s harsh tone, given her sweet and nonconfrontational image as American Idol Judge. I guess we can credit Twitter for giving even the quiet ones a voice.
Twitter Continues to Grow Like Crazy
Since Twitter’s launch in 2006 it ha continued to show unprecedented growth. Data from June 2011 shows that users now send 200 million Tweets per day. This unyielding success is especially apparent when compared to the 2 million tweets per day sent in 2009. Where is this continued success coming from? Twitter has gained popularity worldwide with new languages, technology, and effortless PR, making the service more desirable and accessible. Twitter has also been gradually embraced by a whole new subset of users including athletes, politicians, and religious leaders. But how long can the Twitterverse continue to expand before it encounters a new social media black hole?
Twitter Town Hall, a Success?
As promised, President Obama answered questions posed over Twitter at the “Twitter Town Hall” this week. Many joked that despite exhibiting some technological savvy by interacting with Americans via social media, the President was far beyond the 140-character limit on tweets, with responses averaging 2099 characters. This must have been anticipated when the White House agreed that Obama would receive questions over Twitter but answer those questions verbally. This event was part of the White House’s recent emphasis on social media as a means to connect the President to America’s youth during his 2012 campaign.
An Ingenious Way to Reformat the Twitter Feed
BERG recently released a new Twitter reader that reformats users’ Twitter feeds in an ingenious way. This great software called Shuu.sh analyzes each user’s Twitter feed and ranks updates according to who you usually follow. Shuu.sh accomplishes the desirable goal of emphasizing updates the user has previously shown interest in and playing down (shushing) updates from high-frequency, nuisance tweeters. This is the first social media attempt thus far to manage a problem inherent in a variety of social media outlets including Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace.
Gaga Initiates Fan Support For Ailing Saxophonist Clarence Clemons
After suffering a stroke this Sunday Clarence Clemons, the saxophonist for Springstein’s E Street Band, received an outpouring of support via Twitter. Interestingly, Lady Gaga initiated this wave of support. Lady Gaga became friendly with Clemons when they worked together on her Born This Way album earlier this year. In the thoughtful tweet with a very Gaga Twist, the performed tweeted: “little monsters, my very close friend + musician on ‘The Edge of Glory’ Clarence Clemons is very sick. Can we all make some get well videos?” Gaga’s request seems to be working as Clemens is reported to be making a miraculous recovery.