Tweet, Tweet, then beat

Who knows how long Twitter will be the hot social media currency. It continues its meteoric climb in usership, and you can check user statistics here. Whether you think it's relevant or not to obtain a Twitter account, one thing is for sure--someone you know is Twittering. That person is most likely a Facebook friend. And they just put the kids to bed. Just read their wall. The fascinating details are all there.

Now, if you want to read real news and stimulate your brain, it's possible to achieve both on Twitter. A grad student at DePaul Unversity started a website a few months ago called BreakingTweets.com. It is a news gathering site, where by using Twitter search engines, they report on international news, mostly breaking news. Something happens in the Middle East overnight in the US, traditional media can't, won't cover it. That doesn't mean there isn't a thirst and desire for this type of news.

Thanks to technology, BreakingTweets.com can learn about a story happening in real time, search for eyewitness accounts of a story while also aggregating reaction from those impacted by a news event. The site was sourced by Sky News in one of their online stories about an attempted shooting on the Queen of Holland. The site beat conventional news outlet BBC with the story. Read the riveting account of what happened here.

Technology+Social Media+Journalism=Innovation.

Have a Tweeterific day.