The danger of using Twitter irresponsibly. NECN announces Patrick's running for a third term.

[Mass]

This one is simply ridiculous, and the fact it was tweeted and retweeted as many times is a pretty good sign that people do not take the time to think and react too quickly.

The idea that Patrick would use such an informal setting to reverse his position on not running for a third term is ludicrous, particularly after he has said so many times he would not run for a third term or run for another elected office. but the person tweeting it is somebody working in a news organization, NECN, and was taken seriously by others.

http://baystateliberal.blogspot.com/2013/03/news-judgment.html

Does anyone truly think Deval Patrick would announce for a third term at a routine appearance in the middle of a Wednesday?

Yet that's exactly what an unnamed NECN staffer thought -- and prompted tweeted -- to thousands of followers. The resulting firestorm reinforces the wisdom of the old journalism rule "if your mother says she loves you, check it out."
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So when he told at audience at UMass-Boston that "Thank you very much for the warm welcome and for hosting us today and for the setup to the announcement that I’ve come here to make, which is that I intend to run for a third term as your Governor" it seemed real enough to at least one person.
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Twitter has proven to be a marvelous tool for staying informed -- as long as the tweeps are responsible. You learn who is and isn't by trial and error, and NECN has dinged its brand as a result of the unfiltered reaction.