A Fail You Can’t Blame Twitter For: ABC’s McCain Interview
by Peter Kafka
Posted on March 17, 2009 at 11:21 AM PT
Inevitably, as Twitter bubbles up higher and higher into the mainstream, we’re going to see more misguided stunts like these: George Stephanopoulos of Disney’s ABC News (DIS) interviewing Senator John McCain today, using the newfangled technology.
A Twitter interview must have sounded great to all involved at first blush — Everyone’s talking bout this Twitter! We gotta get in on this! — but if they’d given it any thought, they’d would realize it’s pointless: Twitter is a great broadcast system, but a lousy tool for one-to-one communication.
So conducting an interview using Twitter is like eating soup with a fork. You can do it if you really want. but there’s no reason to do so.
Don’t believe me? Here’s the transcript, which you’re supposed to read from the bottom up. But if you read it from the top down, it’s just as valuable.
SenJohnMcCain@GStephanopoulos Thanks a lot george, let’s do it again soon. now i look forward to reading our followers comments and insults.2 minutes ago from web in reply to GStephanopoulos
GStephanopoulos@SenJohnMcCain Thanks for your time Senator.You’re a good sport I know I’m not getting anymore on Coulter and Ingraham Happy St Pat’s again4 minutes ago from web
SenJohnMcCain@GStephanopoulos like any family we agree on some things and disagree on others.5 minutes ago from web in reply to GStephanopoulos
SenJohnMcCain@GStephanopoulos I’m proud of my daughter and she has a right to her opinions.9 minutes ago from web in reply to GStephanopoulos
GStephanopoulos@SenJohnMcCain Lots of twitterers want to know: what do you think of Meghans’s feud with Coulter and Ingraham?10 minutes ago from web
SenJohnMcCain@GStephanopoulos too early to draw that conclusion.13 minutes ago from web in reply to GStephanopoulos
GStephanopoulos@SenJohMcCain Cheney said on CNN that Obama putting US at risk of new terror attack Agree?16 minutes ago from web
SenJohnMcCain@GStephanopoulos both. the challenges are different but both significant.17 minutes ago from web in reply to GStephanopoulos
GStephanopoulos@SenJohnMcCain What worries you more: Pakistan or Iran?18 minutes ago from web
SenJohnMcCain@GStephanopoulos I’m working with others on alternatives – cong paul ryan has some great ideas.19 minutes ago from web in reply to GStephanopoulos
GStephanopoulos@SenJohnMcCain Take point on 1st AIG bailout How about budget? Will you offer alternative?19 minutes ago from web
SenJohnMcCain@GStephanopoulos to follow up – first AIG bailout was pre-tarp.21 minutes ago from web in reply to GStephanopoulos
GStephanopoulos@SenJohnMcCain Obama says GOP can’t “just say no” on budget Will you offer a full alternative to Obama budget?22 minutes ago from web
SenJohnMcCaini voted for first tarp but that doesn’t mean i voted to bail out AIG.24 minutes ago from web
GStephanopoulos@SenJohnMcCain RIght, but didn’t you vote for first TARP, which went to AIG?26 minutes ago from web
SenJohnMcCain@GStephanopoulos i haven’t seen it but i would explore every option. i repeat, we wouldn’t have this problem if we hadn’t bailed them out35 minutes ago from web in reply to GStephanopoulos
GStephanopoulos@SenJohnMcCain ok, but today: should bonus contracts be broken? Dodd wants a targeted tax on bonuses OK with that?
SenJohnMcCain@GStephanopoulos i would have never bailed out AIG, the real scandal is billions to foreign banks.38 minutes ago from web in reply to GStephanopoulos
GStephanopoulos@SenJohnMcCain AIG: Would a President McCain break bonus contracts? Obama teams says that would cause more harm than good
SenJohnMcCain@GStephanopoulos Happy St. Patrick’s day – slow, sometimes pc somtimes bb41 minutes ago from web in reply to GStephanopoulos
SenJohnMcCainHappy St. Patricks day43 minutes ago from web
SenJohnMcCainboth, usually pc sometimes bb.43 minutes ago from web
SenJohnMcCainhi george im a little slowabout 1 hour ago from web
GStephanopoulos@SenJohnMcCain Happy St Patrick’s Day! First things first: How do u tweet — dictate or type? Blackberry or pc?about 1 hour ago from web
GStephanopoulosFinal call for McCain questions. Interview at noon. You can follow on abcnews.com Go to This Week pageabout 1 hour ago from web
[Image credit: soggydan]
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Comments
Also, aside from how bad Twitter is at one-on-one communications, I never want to be interviewing a politician if there’s a chance that it’s not actually that politician typing the answers.
On a phone interview, even if he’s being fed every answer from someone sitting right behind him, there’s still a chance that he’ll slip up and say something.
Posted by Vasanth Sridharan at March 17th, 2009 at 1:52 pmI’m not going to read it as I think both participants are a few beers short of a six-pack but…
You would think the “geniuses” at Twitter, having seen their product used this way a few thouse and times by now, would invent an interface trick to allow the text to be read in chronological order.
Watching these “stars” of news and politics try and use new technologies is like watching GWB The First encounter a supermarket scanner for the first time.
How will they embarrass themselves next?
Posted by Mac Beach at March 17th, 2009 at 3:24 pmApparently the GWBI supermarket scanner story is a hoax. I stand by the rest of what I said. We see new examples every day.
Posted by Mac Beach at March 17th, 2009 at 11:52 pmMac, step away from the computer.
Posted by Peter Kafka at March 18th, 2009 at 4:36 am