Twitter tips & apps for journalists & everyone else

An effort to understand and utilize Twitter in the newsroom and in life has lead me and my husband, @Edit_Foundry, to search the web and read, read, read. We've found many articles and followed many Tweets on using Twitter. I've decided to start listing what we've found that has been helpful to me as a journalist. My goal is to keep everything in one place so I can easily access it all.

Please use my list, add suggestions and check it out occasionally as I will update it as I find new information to share. The newest links I post will be @ the top of the list.

Twitterfall

This is another web-based Twitter viewer. Twitterfall is supposed to be live, real-time Tweets. I've used it at home just fine, but at work, it doesn't work well at all. It's worth a try if you don't want to continually refresh Twitter and don't want, or are unable, to download any applications.

LocalTweeps

Go to this website to register your zip code. LocalTweeps then groups all of the zip codes registered. This is another tool I can use to seek out Tweeps in the viewing area I am targeting.

TweetWheel

This allows you to see which of your Tweet friends are friends with each other. This really shows you the connections in your Twitter community.

Twitter Apps

Twitter's very own site with popular Applications for you to download.


WeFollow

A user powered Twitter Directory. You add yourself to the directory and categorize yourself with hashtags. Someone searching through the directory will find you by searching hashtags.

Twitscoop

Twitscoop was built to help you stay on top of twitter's hot topics or discussions.
Through an automated algorithm, twitscoop crawls hundreds of tweets every minute and extracts the words which are mentioned more often than usual. The result is displayed in a Tag Cloud, using the following rule: the hotter, the bigger (no joke here).

TweetGrid

This is something I'd like to try and have only ever found Tweets that like using this app. "TweetGrid is a powerful Twitter Search Dashboard that allows you to search for up to 9 different topics, events, conversations, hashtags, phrases, people, groups, etc in real-time. As new tweets are created, they are automatically updated in the grid. No need to refresh the page!"

Twhirl

I use this application at work and at home. So much happens on the desk that I don't have time to continually refresh Twitter. Twhirl is a social software desktop client, based on the Adobe AIR platform. I like that I can keep several Twitter accounts open and running at the same time. I like that DM and replies are different colors so I notice them when they are received. This way I can respond quickly to these messages.

Tweetdeck

I haven't used this application, but it's on my to-do list. From everything I've read, it's a very useful application.

"Tweetdeck is a realtime application that allows users to monitor that information in a single concise view. Tweetdeck currently integrates services from Twitter, Twitscoop, 12seconds, Stocktwits and now Facebook.

But at the heart of Tweedeck, is it's ability to group people together and search across the twittersphere. Grouping friends or work colleagues separately means you have a window on all aspects of your twitter life. Searching across the twittersphere means you can monitor any subject within Twitter. These additional columns automatically update so providing the user with a very effective dashboard of realtime information."

Twitoria

How active are the Tweeps you are following? Twitoria will show you. I have specifically targeted metro Denver and other Colorado Tweeps. I know I've followed a few Public Information Officers, but I haven't seen any updates from them. Twitoria will show me if these PIOs are utilizing Twitter or not, or if I've been missing their Tweets.

Twitual

Twitual is my newest favorite! (Thanks for finding it my dear husband!) It lists Followers - everyone I'm following
Friends - everyone following me
Mutual - following each other
Fans - Tweeps following me, that I'm not following
Idols - Tweeps I follow but don't follow me

Again, since I focus on specific Tweeps by location, and I search out organizations that I converse with or follow daily as news sources, I want to know if these Tweeps are following me back. If I see a PIO is not following me back, I'm going to contact that PIO and request to be followed. Am I being aggressive? Maybe. But, trust me, if you converse with me on Twitter, maybe later I won't be paging you after hours and on the weekends. Or if you Tweet breaking news, I can let you do your job of gathering the info instead of paging you which takes time from you when you call to let me know you have nothing for me but are working on it. Sure I can just watch your Twitter feed and send replies, but sometimes there's breaking news I'm on first that I don't want my competitors to know about. I want to DM you. I can't DM you if you don't follow me back.

Oh, and I know only 2 of the 4 other TV stations in Denver are following me back. I may share a little more breaking news on Twitter now that I know this. Hmmm...

Twellow

Yellow pages for Twitter. No need to say more!

TwitterLocal

I have not yet used TwitterLocal, but it sounds exactly like what I need in my never ending search to connect with people of Metro Denver and Colorado. " TwitterLocal is going to be purely an Adobe AIR based application that allows you to filter Tweets by location."

Twitter Advanced Search

Until I try TwitterLocal, I will continue to use the Advanced search options Twitter give you. Check it out.

Twitter100

I'm just starting to play with this, but I like it so far because I can see 100 followers at one time.

Tweetree

I'm just starting to play with this one as well. "Tweetree puts your Twitter stream in a tree so you can see the posts people are replying to in context. It also pulls in lots of external content like twitpic photos, youtube videos and more, so that you can see them right in your stream without having to click through every link your friends post."


Twittfilter

"Twittfilter is a web based application to help manage your incoming tweets and twitter followers/friends. With Twittfilter you can: Address Book, New Follower Notification, Sorted and Searchable Tweets." I need to play around with this one.

TwTip

Need tips on any subject? Check out TwTip. "TwTip is designed to find and show awesome tips that are shared by Twitter fellows."