Twitter: communication tool or pointless vanity?

The Hansard Society have an interesting discussion on 21st October which will discuss the potential of Twitter.

Generally, I have been sceptical of the use of digital technologies by individual politicians and political parties. Too often the politicians are jumping on a bandwagon, and the political parties want to (rather understandably) use the technology to gain a competitive advantage, and so seek to control each new medium. That said, the parties do have excellent staff who know how to use web technologies very effectively, and there is a group of pioneering elected representatives who are using these technologies imaginatively.

As a consequence, I am very interested in how Twitter might be used. There are two possible aspects to the possible impact of micro-blogs. First, it could assist elected representatives build up their relationships with constituents. The logic of this is that if citizens have a low opinion of politicians as a breed, if they have come into contact with their MP, their opinion will be modified. In short, they might not like MPs per se, but their MP is okay. Thus Twitter might help some citizens see the human side of their MP. Second, will Twitter encourage those who are not very interested in politics to become interested, almost by default.

I am not yet sure the answer to both questions, but the former is the holy grail for political organisers: can they use technology to win votes; and the latter is where academics tend to focus their attention: to enhance participation in civic society.