The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation is a major sponsor of journalism initiatives, and the foundation has been very invested in new media through such programs as the Knight Community Information Challenge, community portal KnightPulse, and the online-only news service MinnPost.com.
So it’s no surprise that Knight sponsored the first Shorty Awards, which recognized people who post content on the social media platform Twitter. Twitter is a micro-blogging system in which users post updates, or “tweets,” that are no more than 140 characters in length. Last night, the awards ceremony honored winners in 26 categories including nonprofits, advertising, entertainment and news.
The winner in the nonprofit category was @athletes4acure, which is written by the managing director of Athletes for a Cure. You can find a lot more nonprofit “tweeters” in this TwitterPack — many great examples of how both individuals and organizations are using this new communications vehicle.
One of my favorites is the winner for the science category, @MarsPhoenix, NASA’s Mars lander. Phoenix provided updates about its mission to its more than 42,000 followers, telling about digging assignments as well as dust storms and declining temperatures, and responding to questions from those who have interest in the program. And when the lander said goodbye before “going to sleep” in the Martian winter, another NASA employee took over to continue sending updates about the program and the insight that is still being discovered. I’ve been following this Twitter stream for months, and I think it’s a very creative way for an organization to put a human face on its projects to build awareness and interest.
Of course, the Knight Foundation itself is on Twitter: read its updates at @knightfdn.
- Crystal Colby, MCF’s web communications associate
