Tweeting about Twitter

I was at a cafe tonight reading The New York Times, and I came across this article which explains the important role Twitter, Facebook, and other social networking websites are playing in the election protests in Tehran. A U.S. State Department official asked Twitter to postpone site maintenance, so as not to interrupt the exchange of information between Iranians during a critical time.

Of course this article caught my attention since I just ranted about how people frivolously use social networking sites. This article describes a very different kind of use. Not only are these websites allowing Iranians to communicate with each other about changing conditions during the protests, they are also providing information for the "outside world", since journalists are not allowed to report on the protests without permission.