20 Jul 2010

Tweeting Around The Hill

Twitter Birds by Luc Latulippe

I get questions about Twitter all the time — what is it, why would you want to do it, what would I say in it and who would care?  There are a lot of ways to answer all of those questions (and many others), but instead, let me just explain one value it can add when you want to stay connected to your community and the best scoops around the city.

You know that expression, “a little birdie told me…”?  Twitter is something like that.  Yes, some people use it as a way to overshare waaay too much about their daily lives.  (One wonderful thing is, you do not have to follow everyone.  It’s as easy as “hiding” the updates of an oversharing-friend from your Facebook newsfeed.)  But there are also people on Twitter who use it to share news and tips about the neighborhood and city.  It’s where I get a lot of my news before any newspaper or even blogger has had a chance to post about it — for example, JDLand (@JDLand) often tweets tid-bits when she doesn’t have time to write a post.  It lets me know something is going on and I’ll go back to check her site when I have time, or I’ll go investigate myself.  How about the recent fire at the Argonaut?  Frozen Tropics (@FrozenTropics) was out of town and got a tip from a reader, so she tweeted it.  Some of her followers saw the tweet and went over to check it out and tweeted updates – including the owners, who kept us all updated throughout the day.  And last year when Capital City Diner (@CapCityDiner) was having trouble with DCRA (who is on Twitter as well at @DCRA) and getting approval to put the diner on the newly-laid foundation?  They kept their followers updated throughout those several crazy hours via Twitter.

The Hill is Home (@TheHillIsHome) is also on Twitter and we often tweet things that we don’t have time to write, or simply don’t have enough to say about to fill an entire post.  For example, Living Social and Groupon Deals, road closures, and news of the apprehension of some kids caught red-handed with stolen bikes…THIH’s Nichole (@nicholeaileen) even tweeted a picture of the stolen bikes so her followers could see if any belonged to them.

Here’s another example of the power of Twitter: remember Snowmageddon?  You know how we knew which businesses were still open?  Or when Frager’s got a new shipment of shovels and sleds?  You guessed it: Twitter.  Since most of your THIH writers were either working remotely, chasing kids around, or just enjoying a snow day, Twitter saved us — and the city’s other bloggers and journalists — a lot of time on the phone checking to see whether or not restaurants and stores were open.  We follow them all on Twitter and knew who was open, who was not, and who had snow-day specials.

Think what you want of it — I’m the first to admit that tweeting is not for everyone — but when you follow the right people it can be a great resource.  So who should you be following to stay looped in on the best information around Capitol Hill?  Instead of providing you will a long list of businesses here (there are well over 100 Hill businesses using Twitter), check out these top Tweeters and Twitter Lists, which are frequently updated.

The Hill is Home: @TheHillIsHome

The Hill is Home’s Lists:

CHAMPS: @CapitolHillDC

CHAMPS’ Lists:

Barracks Row: @BarracksRow

Barracks Row’s Lists:

H Street

DC Government Agencies and Utilities:

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5 responses to “Tweeting Around The Hill”

  1. Jeff says:

    Great compilation of the Hill businesses and resources. Thanks very much. I wonder if this would be a good place to also compile a list of the regular folks who live on the Hill? If so, I’ll throw my name in the hat: @jeffdonald.

  2. Jeff – I think that’s a great idea! Feel free to add your twitter address to the comments and those Hill businesses/resources that haven’t been mentioned yet!

  3. Jen DeMayo Jen DeMayo says:

    the Atlas is on the Twitter! @AtlasPACDC

    I’m only on twitter for the Atlas and the Atlas find Nichole’s tweets very amusing.

  4. Kate says:

    Love this list! So useful. Thanks, Claudia!

  5. Tim Krepp says:

    Well, if we’re all throwing ourselves out there: @dclikealocal

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