Tuesday 3 May 2011

You Heard it Here First. News of Bin Laden Breaks on Twitter



If rumours are to be believed, not only did Twitter see the highest sustained level of activity EVER on Monday – news of his not so sad demise also broke on the social network. How times change.

Now, this blog isn’t about whether I think the American should / should not have pinged the man. No, it’s my round up of the top ten tweets that stood out on the network’s busiest day in history -for right or wrong. I will say this though – Osama Bin Laden fans might find certain content offensive. Everyone else should find the list a useful overview of Monday’s Twittersphere. And what a busy day it was...

1. First up @rob_zooter for bringing me the news so perfectly:
“Twitter changing the way modern news is reported. Never expected Phil Neville to be the 1st person to tell me Bin Laden’s dead.”
2. Next up @jedhallam for making a brilliant point, and justifying my near allergy of pre-scheduled tweets:
“So people that set up autotweets will be feeling pretty daft today”
3. For highlighting the above so perfectly @Ginner
“Guys. They just got Bin Laden! RT @planetjedward. When you wear a hat any type of hat [SIC] it always makes your hear soft.”
NB. Young people actually look up to these people. How. Very. Very. Depressing.
4. For summing up all that is wrong with Daybreak / why no one watches it in less than 140 characters (not all that hard when you think about it)@richardbbacon:
“Lorraine rolling with all the latest Kate and William kissed three days ago developments. They’re hoping to slip in the OBL news on Thursday.”
And no one watches this programme? Really?
5. For making me properly chuckle on the way to the gym (A time of day when I never, ever chuckle – believe me) @Vimto_C:
“How did they finally find Bin Laden? Clearly through his Sony Playstation account details.”
I wish I shared this wit.
6. For brilliant journalistic commentary @alunthorne:
“Clear what was on Obama’s mind when referring to silliness. Absolutely beautiful”.
7. For putting it all in perspective @WillHeaven:
“Suspect Prince William and Kate Middleton would have had a quiet honeymoon after all.”
(Though know which story Daybreak would have followed and it wouldn’t have seen anyone going to a small town in Pakistan unless a Windsor was spotted on a sunlounger)
8. For saying what I was thinking, only putting it much better @Herring1967:
“Isn’t the real story that Bin Laden was actually alive?”
Was very pleased to see I wasn’t the only one who bought the propaganda that the Al Jazeera videos were fronted by a particularly good look-a-like come impressionist.
9. For being the first person to share the Bank Holiday bin joke which, I admit, quickly became painfully bad @peterfirman:
“I didn’t think there was a Bin collection on a bank holiday.”
I know, groan.
10. For making my feel a little bid bad for laughing at the twitter stream of jokes (which were funny, come on) @laurenceb
Waizer says it “9/11 survivor best: But I just can’t find it in me to be glad that one more person is dead, even if it is Osama Bin Laden.”




Makes it all too real, doesn’t it?

2 comments:

  1. Brilliant!
    However, my personal favourite was
    Obama: anyone else want to see my birth-certificate? *drops mic, wallks away*!

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  2. Sorry for slight delay Fee but loving that one too! It was a good day for twitter (and hopefully world peace!?!)

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