Twitter: an introduction to microblogging for health librarians

In this article, we introduce health librarians to Twitter and examine its potential (as well as its problems) as a platform for sharing and seeking information. In focusing on many practical aspects of using Twitter, we also critique microblogging as a way to broadcast what you are doing, thinking, or saying. Twitter’s significance is greater than simply the diffusion of transient forms of information within social networks; more generally, we believe that Twitter is increasingly symbolic of a tech-oriented culture engaged in constant peer-to-peer sharing, surveillance, and mass collaboration [3]. Twitter is a Web 2.0 phenomenon with no signs of slowing down. Along with Jaiku and Plurk (two other popular microblogging tools), Twitter is riding a wave of enthusiasm around the world [4]. Twitter enjoyed an exponential growth in popularity in 2008. As of January 2009, there were almost 4.5 million Twitter users worldwide; this represents a massive 752% increase in 2008 alone [5]. According to HubSpot, one million new visitors viewed Twitter in December 2008 [6]. In terms of increased numbers of users and hype, the rise of Twitter mirrors the interest shown in the past with other Web 2.0 tools such as Facebook, Wikipedia, and YouTube. Is Twitter a useful communication tool for health librarians? A number of librarians are experimenting with microblogging, but we have noted a lack of participation among the health library community [7,8]. Although the use of Twitter was slow in 2007 and rose sharply in 2008, it will likely gain even more attention in 2009 [9]. Twitter is representative of a new generation of information tools—including handhelds and mobiles like the iPhone and BlackBerry—that help to promote ambient information access and “on-the-go” communication [10].