Washington Post Twitter account suggests you buy paper instead of reading Twitter

By Jeremy Binckes
June 23, 2011 - 11:36 am

The Washington Post's PostLocal Twitter account is under fire after a surprising tweet they sent this morning.

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The tweet caught many of its readers by surprise:

 

We love the RTs, but you know, you could read a lot of these stories by simply feeding 75 cents into a corner newspaper box.less than a minute ago via HootSuite Favorite Retweet Replypostlocal
postlocal

 

"It was maybe not quite what we meant in 140 characters," Jane Elizabeth, the Post's deputy local editor for digital, says. "Sometimes you look at what you've tweeted, and think, ‘I didn’t have the space to say exactly what I wanted to say.'" Elizabeth wouldn't say which staff member sent the tweet, saying only that it was "regular staffer."

Seven minutes later, an apology was tweeted from the PostLocal account:

 

Hey all, my apologies. I didn't intend to be rude with the tweet about buying the paper.less than a minute ago via HootSuite Favorite Retweet Replypostlocal
postlocal

The account "tries to walk the line between being edgy and not being rude," Elizabeth said. "Every once in a while, it crosses the line. Snark isn’t what we’re after.”

Snark, however, was what Twitter served in return:

Mere moments before putting its foot in its mouth, it seems. RT @kcivey Wait, when did @postlocal become a human?less than a minute ago via HootSuite Favorite Retweet ReplySarah M Heffern
smheffern

I love reading the Washington Post, but really really, @Postlocal, really? http://ow.ly/5oLwu #facepalm @KEderless than a minute ago via HootSuite Favorite Retweet ReplyScott Whitlock
ScottJW

Accepts the paypals?@postlocal We love the RTs, but you could read a lot of these stories by simply feeding .75 into a corner newspaper box.less than a minute ago via TweetDeck Favorite Retweet ReplyJohn Lea
JdotLeazy

@postlocal When you're done with an RT you can't use it to line a litterbox or start a fireless than a minute ago via web Favorite Retweet ReplyArt Drauglis
ADrauglis

Ashley Withers has collected more.

Short URL: http://tbd.ly/j53tQX

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