LEGISLATIVE NOTEBOOK: Politicians embrace Twitter’s reach

From the San Angelo Standard Times

Twitter also can be a fundraising mechanism.

I spoke with Vincent Harris of Harris Media, which has Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, as a client for his run for lieutenant governor.

Harris remembered a funding drive he did for Gov. Rick Perry when Perry was in a presidential campaign and got about 20 donors over the course of a couple of hours, known as a “money bomb.”

“Twitter really is the tool of the hyperactive, hyperengaged political class,” Harris said.

What about rural areas, where there may not be as strong of a Twitter presence?

“I think that Twitter is important everywhere,” Harris said. “As important in West Texas as it is in Dallas. … The benefits far outweigh the potential negative results.”

The trick is not to use Twitter merely for broadcasting, but to make it an interactive conversation, Harris said.

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