World Leaders On Twitter

Research Note: World Leader Rankings on Twitter October 2010  3  The ever popular Queen Rania of Jordan retains the third place continuing to actively promote and inspire humanitarian causes around the world through Twitter and many other social media outlets. Most notable on the new list is President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, who only back in March called for restrictive government oversight of the Internet in frustration over social networking web sites like Twitter and Facebook used by Venezuela's opposition movements to organize protests against the government; he has now come about 180 degrees. President Chavez joined Twitter in April labeling his account a secret weapon to connect to the world. "This isn’t capitalist or socialist, technology depends on how you use it.” “The Internet can’t be just for the bourgeoisie, it’s for the ideological battle as well.” Chavez explained. The President quipped that he needs to place his account in a bucket of ice to cool off; he is apparently spot on as his followers are now nearing one million placing him at the number four spot globally. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama appears committed to a citizen-centric approach amassing an additional half a million followers over the last several months to gain over 700,000 followers on his Twitter account. The UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum continues to engage his citizens and residents with open direct communication. In June of this year he held the first e-session with the public on the Prime Minister's official website. The frank dialogue covered many issues most prominent the fiscal health of Dubai. Sheikh Mohammed noted that evidence of a recovery from the global economic crisis is already in place. ''I would like to point out that the symptoms of recovery have started to manifest, and the duration of recovery is expected to be much shorter than that required for other economies." he explained. The outspoken President from Venezuela is not the only Latin leader in the top 10 as he is joined by the populist President Sebastián Piñera of Chile who with his entire cabinet have opened Twitter accounts. Another addition is President Felipe Calderón of Mexico who tweets to his Twitter account around four times a day and replies to tweets of Mexican journalists and political analysts. President Piñera and President Calderón have each accumulated about a quarter million followers. Additional new entrants include Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva of Thailand and President Abdullah Gul of Turkey. Twitter played a key role in the civil unrest in Bangkok earlier this year. As many websites were blocked and Thailand’s traditional media clearly divided into pro- and anti-government camps, Twitter was a much valued source to Bangkok residents to understand the true situation on the ground and most importantly in local neighborhoods. While in Turkey, The Turkish president is not shy on expressing his opinion on the Web having used his Twitter account to condemn his country's ban on YouTube and instructed officials to examine legal ways of reopening access. www.digitaldaya.com