NB: I was asked to pen a quick summary of social media & the BBC as “background reading” for an internal meeting so republishing here. Its inevitably partial as its meant to be a summary not the definitive history. Also apologies for any errors. They are mine. Thanks especially to Martin Belam, Robin Hamman, Lizzie Jackson, Euan Semple, Andrew Bowden , Daniel Bennett, Kevin Anderson, and Peta Haigh for their memories, help over the years and especially for their blogging. Otherwise i’d never have been able to put this together.

NB: Updated – Weds 10.30pm: after reminders/tweets/comments from colleagues. Added iPM, Island Blogging, Some links, people, BBC Connector.

A History of Social at BBC Online:

It’s now almost a cliche to say that the BBC has always been social. Radio and TV has, of course, for over 80 years been a catalyst for overwhelming responses from listeners and viewers. Its stories, presenters and DJs have provided the social capital around which thousands of real life (and now online) communities have coalesced, normally without any BBC support or ownership. Staff guidance for tweeting and before that blogging is relatively recent but the infrastructure and policies to support interaction from programmes as diverse as Swap Shop, Blue Peter, Family Favourites and Crimewatch is long standing inside the BBC.

We are prone to imagine that, for example,  the 4 year old Radio 1 Facebook page is  a completely new phenomenon forgetting of course that Radio 1 pioneered and hosted in the late 60s the “Radio 1 Club”;  a ” link between the listeners at home and the D.J.’s and stars” , where alongside a weekly live radio show from various venues in the UK, Radio Times featured a  “members magazine”. And like today there were even disruptive listeners; in 1970 a R1 commissionaire was attacked by “rowdy teenagers” at a club event.

So this very quick canter through 15 years of social activity at BBC Online is, in lots of way, as  the baseball player Yogi Berra so memorably put it. “it’s like Deja Vu, all over again”

1994 -1997 – At B-B-C dot co uk…

1994 -  BBC websites for programmes start to appear from 1994 onwards although the formal launch of BBC Online/BBC News Online is still 3 years away. Email addresses and URLs start to be read out on air. Some news/radio programmes experiment with IRC. This continues sporadically into the next decade until Twitter effectively kills it off in 2009/10.

1997 – 2000: Forums, and Live Chats

1997: BBC Online and BBC News Online formally launch in Nov 1997.

1997 – The first BBC message board launches for the old Radio 4 programme; Home Truths closely followed by EastEnders, & Doctor Who (even though it wasn’t to return to the BBC for another 8 years). A fairly crude third party piece of software was used until replaced by an internal system dubbed Howerd 1 (after Frankie’s 70s stage show “A funny thing happened on the way to a forum” – geddit ?). It was replaced by Howerd2, only meant to be a brief temporary upgrade. It lasted 4 years.

1998 – Lizzie Jackson is hired to become the BBC’s first Category Manager for Communities. The BBC’s community team grows until at its peak there are 8 community managers for different BBC depts.  The BBC’s first guidelines for hosting and moderation are established.

2000-2003 iPresenters & iStudio

2000 – Ashley Highfield joins the BBC as its new “New” Media boss and in the midst of the dot.com crash, purchases online forum; H2G2; (HitchHikers Guide to the Galaxy:ie: H2G2), its community , staff and technology (Called DNA after Douglas Noel Adams). Still 5 years before Wikipedia launches and seen by some as a “what if” moment, its technology still effectively powers BBC’s social publishing team 11 years later.

2001: The Joy of Text; a theme night devoted to SMS on BBC One receives the lowest ever ratings share for a prime time BBC One programme in its history although a record 500K texts were received during the evening.

2001: During the 2001 election, Nick Robinson keeps a regularly updated online diary of  quotes, links, photos and text messages, the BBC’s first official formative “blog”. He returns to the BBC in 2005; pronounces “My name is Nick Robinson and I’m a blogger” and is one of the first bloggers on the BBC’s new blog platform. (Developed using Six Aparts’ Movable Type software)

2002: The launch of iPlayer was 6 years away but bbc.co.uk launches, in its Bush House building in Aldwych, a dedicated studio devoted to live chats with celebrities and recruits dubbed iStudio. It recruits a mix of new talent and broadcasters (iPresenters) to host the chats. One of which; Spencer Kelly later goes on to present BBC News’ technology programme BBC Click. The experiment is quietly abandoned when New Media moves to new accommodation in W12 in 2004.

2002: The  rebranding of BBC Online as BBCi and the redesign of the BBC site gives it a site wide toolbar for the first time. One of the permanent links is  an index page: dubbed “Communicate” (“chat, messageboards and more” ). Listing the BBC’s live chats, forums and ways to discuss BBC programmes and topics, it remained there for another 3 years.

2003 – 2005: User Generated Content and the rise of the Citizen Journalist

2003 Internally called “chat around content”;  a web based instant chat service dubbed “BBC Connector” appears on several sites. Never officially “launched” and closed in 2005 it was used during the 2004 Olympics and on sites for Radio 1 and Strictly Come Dancing.

2004: Three years after it purchased H2G2, BBC finally migrates its message board/forum portfolio (outside of BBC News) to the DNA  platform. By now the majority of BBC messageboards are reactively moderated. Moderation is handled by a third party company. Strict internal governance is introduced to reduce rising pan BBC moderation costs.

2004: Chris Kimber, until recently the Managing Editor for BBC Radio/Music interactive, says in an interview with The Independent looking back on the last decade:

““Only 10 years ago, radio was a one-way experience, but digital technology has given the radio ears that provide programme-makers with instant feedback. Before they had to rely on getting letters back but now we have chat rooms, message boards, text messaging and e-mail. Programmes can really connect with audiences in a way that 10 years ago they could not“

2004: The wealth of user filmed footage of the Boxing Day Indian Ocean earthquake leads to a proposal to create a pilot UGC hub inside BBC Newsgathering;  flitering, verifying and distributing (to TV, and BBC News online) the thousands of images, video and text sent to BBC News..

2004: Pioneering blogs spring up around the BBC (Kevin Anderson’s US Election diary) or using external platforms  (Paul Mason’s G8 focused blog for Newsnight hosted on Typepad).  This leads (in 2005) and advised by Anderson to  Pete Clifton’s (Head of BBC News interactive) notorious internal, but later published in his weekly online column, email where he pledged to no longer launch blogs that “weren’t blogs” which he defined as having permalinks, RSS & comments. A blogs network, powered by Movable Type, launches in the BBC in late 2005.

2004: BBC News migrates its Have Your Say forums to a platform powered by third party software provider; Jive and uses the BBC’s SSO iD system for the first time.

2005-8 “Use the Web as your canvas”

2005: Island Blogging: A BBC Scotland community site that allowed users to blog via the BBC’s pages launches. One of the first hyper local sites, it closed in 2010.

July 7^th 2005: The lessons of 7/7 help formalise the BBC News UGC pilot which leads to the creation of a team which later grows to 20 staff and a 24/7 service.

2006: A blog post from Helen Boaden launches the Editors’ blog inside BBC News. A response to the Hutton inquiry ; it aspires to be a place for senior BBC staff to explain their decisions. Similar blogs are later launched for Radio, TV, and BBC Online itself.

2006: Blogging Guidance: After a consultation process using a wiki and the BBC’s internal staff message boards; The BBC publishes staff guidance on blogging for the first time. It is later copied and forms the basis of guidelines for many other public sector organizations.

2006: The BBC’s strategic rethink becomes dubbed BBC2.0 and the BBC publishes a set of 15 web principles to aspire to.  These include “The web is a conversation. Join in: Adopt a relaxed, conversational tone. Admit your mistakes.” And “Link to discussions on the web, don’t host them: Only host web-based discussions where there is a clear rationale”.

A further principle “Treat the entire web as a creative canvas” is more enthusiastically adopted by the BBC as it starts to establishes presences on Flickr, YouTube, Second Life, MySpace, and eventually Facebook.

2006: Ashley Highfield makes a speech about social software and the BBC “we absolutely don’t want to become a MySpace or a Flickr or a Friends Reunited, we want to work with these players, to partner our relevant offerings with theirs.”.  Its later highly criticised by ex BBC staffer Tom Coates in one of the most notorious blog posts of the time “Who’s afraid of Ashley Highfield ?”

 2006: Brainchild of Robin Hamman, the pioneering BBC Manchester blog launches aiming to collaborate with local bloggers and curate local content. The experiment lasts 2 years. It closes in 2008.

Oct 2006 The 606 message board is replaced by a new 606 community/social network powered by the DNA platform. For a brief period it becomes the largest sport specific social network in the UK. It eventually closes as part of DQF announcements in the summer of 2011.

2007: As part of the BBC’s fledgling Developer Network; Backstage; the BBC works with developer Mario Menti to launch automated Twitter accounts for @bbcnews and @bbcbreaking for the first time. Menti now runs Twitterfeed; the automated twitterfeed service.

2007: Radio 4 launch iPM; a weekly 30 minute radio show that aimed to “source what we do through the best blogs, passionate ‘ear catching’ online debate as well as comments and recommendations of others.” It still runs in 2011 although its online experimentation (sharing potential stories ) is now less prominent.

2008 – 2010: Social Media

2008: BBC updates its blogging guidance to incorporate “social networking”. The BBC’s Director for Editorial Policy; David Jordan said “It does not restrict BBC staff from conducting legitimate activities on the Internet. But it does raise awareness of how crucial the BBC’s reputation for impartiality and objectivity is.”

2008 BBC upgrades it blogs (still being powered by Movable Type) but implements a site wide UI, and integrates comments from DNA for the first time enabling blog comments to use the BBC’s back end moderation platform. By now it has 100+ blogs across all its depts.

2009: BBC appoints its first social media editors; Roo Reynolds in BBC TV (now Rowan Kerek Robertson), Alex Gubbay in BBC News (now Chris Hamilton) and Jem Stone in BBC Radio and Music. Its comms team later appoints a Head of Engagement; Sophie Brendel.

2010: iPlayer v3.0 launches which features Twitter/Facebook integration and friends recommendations/comments for the first time. Take up of the social features is mixed, however, and the site revises these, integrating  sharetools, in a further release a year later.

2010: BBC upgrades its Blogging (now Social Media) Guidelines to incorporate advice for microblogging (ie: Tweeting) for the first time. Hashtags start to appear on TV screens.  BBC News launch a social media training programmefor its staff.

Richard Bacon becomes the first regular BBC presenter to have over a 1m followers on Twitter.

2010: “Live” pages form the cornerstone of the BBC’s Election (and post-Election) pages, World Cup site, and Ashes site.  Embedding tweets, blog posts, links and summaries they remain the key platform to do connected storytelling inside Journalism. BBC TV and Radio deploy third party software; Cover It Live to do likewise for large events such as Glastonbury.

2010: The 10th anniversary of “MustardLand”; The Archers (the Radio 4 soap) message board; One of the few remaining forums inside the BBC, it still attracts over 1m posts (a substantial amount of which are off topic) published live to the server by users every year.

2010: The BBC launches its first short url (powered by bit.ly) to encourage sharing inside Facebook and Twitter; http://bbc.in/

 2011 : 

- As part of DQF announcements, at the beginning of the year,  BBC announces it will consolidate its forums, blogs and replace with “integrated social tools”. It pledges to “not launch its own social network”

- BBC News updates integrates its blogs into new Correspondents Pages, introduces a character limit to comments for the first time and closes Have Your Say. All other BBC blogs retain the existing design and comment format.

- Twitter replies and retweets outnumber SMS sent to Radio 1 and 5 Live in a month for the first time. The @bbcbreaking twitter account takes off following a series of unprecendented international news stories.

- Sharetools; a BBC version of “tweet this” and a Facebook “share” button is launched on BBC News and iPlayer. It replaced in some areas of the site; a  “share this” “bar” with links to Digg, Del.ici.ous that had been available, with limited take up, since 2006.

-BBC announces the “disposure” of H2G2. It emerges that a consortium of the community and previous H2G2 owners form to buy it back.

And I think that’s where we came in ….

Further reading:

• Radio 1 Club (1968) – The Radio history site has clips and anecdotes about his pre-cursor to the Radio 1 roadshow and ultimately Radio 1 Big Weekend: http://www.radiorewind.co.uk/radio1/radio_1_club_page.htm
• “Brandon’s History of Online BBC  ” Now the BBC’s Chief Engineer Brandon Butterworth recalls the pre BBC Online days of introducing IRC and email into programmes for the first time: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2007/12/brandons_history_of_bbc_on_the_2.html
• H2G2: How the purchase of H2G2 changed the policies and culture of the BBC. Mark Moxon in an H2G2 forum thread.http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/alabaster/F55683?thread=130228
• “Hugh Garry – A deja vu moment” – Huey discusses the early days of the Radio 1 website and use of emails/early interaction with DJs/presenters-
• http://hughgarry.typepad.com/hugh_garry/2011/04/30-days-of-instagram-day-4-a-deja-vu-moment.html
• The BBC iStudio (2002) -  A press release launching the ill-fated iStudio, home of 100s of live web chats in Bush House, the former home of New Media & Technology (FM&T as was) in the early naughties. http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2002/09_september/05/studio_fastfacts.shtml
• BBC 2.0: Why Royal Television Society Baird Lecture -BBC 2.0: why on demand changes everything – Celebrated speech from Mark Thompson at Edinburgh TV Festival in 2006. http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/speeches/stories/thompson_baird.shtml
• “Many people don’t visit bbc.co.uk. So their only contact with the BBC might be on someone’s personal blog.” Nick Reynolds discusses how the BBC’s first blogging guidelines were developed.http://nickreynoldsatwork.wordpress.com/2008/01/10/bbc-blogging-guidelines-nostalgia-1/
• The BBC’s 15 Web Principles – Tom Loosemore (2006/7) 15 web principles semi adopted by the BBC. http://www.slideshare.net/hvs/bbc20-the-bbcs-15-web-principles
• The notorious Speak Your Branes blog, still active, that has run  from 2007  – “This blog is dedicated to the dribble-spattered lunacy of BBC “Have Your Say” discussions.”http://ifyoulikeitsomuchwhydontyougolivethere.com/about/
• New Ways into Blogs (2008) – Giles Wilson explains to BBC News users how the BBC has adopted a single pan BBC blogs platform integrating BBCiD and a sign in commenting feature across all BBC blogs http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/theeditors/2008/04/new_ways_into_blogs.html
• The launch of iPlayer v.3.0 featuring friends recommendations and facebook/twitter integration. “Introducing the all new BBC iPlayer (This time it’s personal)” – Anthony Rose (2010) http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2010/05/introducing_the_all_new_bbc_ip.html
• UGC 5 Years On – Matthew Eltringham, until recently the Head of the BBC News’ UGC newsgathering team reflects on the 5 years since 7/7 and the launch/evolution of the UGC hub http://www.bbc.co.uk/journalism/blog/2010/07/ugc-five-years-on.shtml

• “Is there too much of a desire to fit in to the online world as it is, and not enough of a vision for the unique role that the BBC can play in shaping that world?” Matthew Shorter (ex BBC Music Interactive Editor now consultant) “BBC’s Online Social Strategy” (2011)http://www.unthinkableconsulting.com/blog/2011/2/2/bbc-onlines-social-strategy.html
• Radio’s Twitter Obsession – Matt Deegan “The problem is real people, they really couldn’t care less.” A sceptical blogpost, from an influential commentator criticizing BBC Radio’s (amongst others) use of Twitter.http://www.mattdeegan.com/2011/05/15/radio%E2%80%99s-twitter-obsession/
• No more ‘us and them’: How 20 years of digital communications smashed the boundaries between media and audience – Martin Belam (2011). Many references to the history of interaction between BBC radio/tv/online and listeners/viewers/users – http://www.currybet.net/cbet_blog/2010/11/belam-wud1.php
• Martin has documented BBC Online’s history actively during 2000-2005 when he worked there and subsequently from afar including a series of posts about the BBC’s History of Engagement. Read his invaluable archives: http://www.currybet.net/cbet_blog/2010/01/working-at-the-bbc.php
• Early community producer; Robin Hamman blogged extensively about the BBC’s experiments in this area. See his BBC archives. http://www.cybersoc.com/bbc/

Steve Martin @smartin –  Business Development Manager, BBC World Service

Like most of the people on this list, although he frequently tweets about his job representing BBC Radio in Africa, Steve is a generous, insightful commentator on the UK radio industry in general. His blog http://earshot.tvi.gg/ (recent posts about a Bauer TV ad, Ros Atkins from World Have Your Say, and the Pips) and a  lively podcast focusing on radio production in all its forms are also must reads/downloads.

Brett Spencer – @brettsr - Interactive Editor, Radio 2 & 6music

Next week Brett starts a new role as the digital commissioner for Radio 2 & 6music after a recent stint pioneering this stuff with BBC Three Counties radio. You’ll obviously find a BBC focus in his stream but he’s also a shrewd tweeter of journalism/radio conferences/panels (He used to head up digital at 5 Live) and he manages to dig up all manner of links, stats and insights relating to audio consumption …as well as a mild obsession with obscure US TV dramas and the UK stand up circuit.

Sam Bailey – @samuelbailey - Senior Producer, Radio 1/1xtra Interactive

Sam is one of the key young producers making Radio 1/1xtra the most confident and popular multiplatform radio station, certainly in the UK, probably in the world. This is a very much his personal account but alongside the banter with colleagues, and jokes with DJs/presenters you’ll just as likely to see him giving props to peers in Global or Absolute as well as plugging the weekly innovation from the team on the 4th floor in Yalding House.

Nigel Smith – @nigelcsmith – Interactive Editor, BBC 5 Live

Shortly on his way to Salford as the now confirmed digital boss of 5 Live, then I hope Nigel will continue to provide a fairly personal first hand account of one of the highest profile moves north by the BBC. A long time Americana blogger and a bit of a documentary/film nut he’s also makes a lot of sense discussing the merits of “visualising” radio   You might also see Nigel pop up from time to time on the official @bbc5live account.

Rhian Roberts @rhiroberts - Head of Development, BBC 5 Live

…and talking of BBC North. Rhian is one of the smartest, persuasive leaders I’ve met at the BBC and has been planning 5 Live’s move. Tweeting about today’s Kermode/Mayo special from the new Media UK base reflected on all the time she’s invested. “Makes all the spread sheets and gant charts worth it”.  Its a year since we spoke, on a BBC course, but I still feel in touch and connected a year later. Its all Twitter’s fault.

Steve Bowbrick -@bowbrick – Editor, About the BBC.

Well you probably know him already. One of the people behind Speechification, an early pioneer of UK start-ups and in his role as Editor of the Radio 4 blog the man who successfully introduced social media to a 44 year old Radio station (average age of its listeners: 55) he even took that photo of Broadcasting House at the top of this page. Still doing what he does best, which is being an ambassador for the BBC and what it represents, he luckily hasn’t suffered too much from having me as a boss. His tweets could be recommendations gleaned from the FT,  RTE, NPR, the far reaches of Radio 3 or oddly the shopfronts of London’s outer reaches. He’s charming too. The rotter.

Nick Sutton – @SuttonNick – Editor of The World At One, The World This Weekend

Nick is part of a newer clutch of Radio 4 editors and producers dipping their toe into the waters even as far as urging listeners to use hashtags on air. (see also editor of PM/BH; Jo Carr – @jocarr ) In the last few months he’s built up a healthy following trailing stories, upcoming guests,  and now provides the go to service for politics geeks every evening around 9pm with his hot off the presses preview service of the next days newspapers front pages.

Corrie Corfield – @corfmeister – Announcer & Newsreader, Radio 4

Quietly over the last few years the radio4/world service announcers have established themselves as just as much of an institution online as they are on air with some very playful extensions to that previously unknown world inside the “Con” (as they affectionately call it). Now I could just as easily have picked@zebsoanes or @kathyclugston or @alicearnold1 but Corrie shades it for her engagement with listeners, her obvious warmth for her Radio 4 colleagues, and those some leftfield recommendations to listen. Right now.

Keri Davies – @keridavies - Scriptwriter, The Archers, Ambridge Extra and Digital Producer, Radio 4.

If you’re a fan then the privilege of seeing the planning and process that goes into producing the worlds longest running documentary soap via Keri’s updates is a genuine treat. For years a very capable host of the Archers message board (now looked after by @tayler), he along with @jezzer is skillfully opening up how the BBC produces and scripts radio drama online.

Rupert Brun – @barwickgreen – Head of Technology, Audio and Music

Rupert is another of those incredibly clever people that are a real privilege to work alongside. He is also was the man behind HD Sound which is a great thing. Mind you he had me at the choice of @barwickgreen for his username.

and finally @andyfakeparfitt . He’s not real of course. The actual Controller of Radio 1, 1xtra and popular music is not on twitter. But this fake parody  slips courtesy of  this tweet earlier this week. which i  obviously don’t endorse.

This isn’t a comprehensive list but for i do keep more extensive lists of BBC Twitter accounts via twitter.com/bbc/  of BBC presenters, DJs, producers, and staff. Over 300 of em.

• Radio 1/1xtra
• Radio 2
• Radio 3
• Radio 4
• 5 Live
• 6music
• Official BBC Radio/Music accounts

The closing session for this years Radio at the Edge conference was a fascinating chat between the 66 year old veteran DJ Tony Blackburn and new 5 Live afternoon presenter; Richard Bacon about their mutual love for all things tech. What was infectious was how they both clearly feed off the opportunities that social sites were giving them in helping them present radio shows and the ease with which they’ve integrated this into what they do. Even if you’ve been a presenter for over 40 years.

It was almost impossible to transcribe both so I’ve focused on Richard’s side of the conversation.

For more: Adam Bowie has written up a detailed report of Radio at the Edge 09 including this session and Tony’s comments. Mark Rock captured a whole bunch of Audioboos pre, during and post the chat. I’m told that the actual audio will soon be available at the Radio at the Edge site. This is my quick typing so apologies for any errors.

• Why is he the most followed Twitter user in the UK ? “Its a clerical error. I ended up on the Twitter suggested users lists next to Ashton Kucher and Oprah Winfrey. So I have lots of followers in the USA, South Korea, and Japan.”
• Helps with programme ideas “Twitter is really good for trending and you can see what people are excited about.When Republicans attacked the NHS . I saw very quickly that people were excised about it. I saw the hashtag and thought “lets do a phone in about that…” before the papers did. And it was the same with Jan Moir.So its more than just the conversations and tweets…it actually affects the editorial on the show. I see it like the DVD extras of a programme.”
• Reach or Impact “I will go on Twitter and say what the topics in the show are ten minutes before I go on air. Now you don’t get new listeners but you do end up reminding users you are there. Thats the trade off. You can see why some people get twitter wrong . You shouldn’t just use twitter to sell things. You need to let people into your life, tell them personal things.you tell them about your self and then…occasionally you can say “i’m on the radio, or i have a book out”.
• Do Twitter followers belong to you or the radio station ? “I think they belong to you. Because normally a twitterfeed is quite personal . When i started on the station in January i plugged it a lot on 5 Live. They come through the radio station but then they started come from other sources. Followers beget more followers.Five live are welcome to the followers from South Korea.” (ie: the worldwide followers he gained when he was a suggested user to follow on Twitter)
• What type of presenter works on Twitter ? “There are two types of presenters.Those that do like talking [about themselves] and some who never quite like talking about themselves. There are radio stations who force their presenters to go on Twitter and you can tell when that happens. Some people are made to write blogs and you can tell that. There’s a danger there, if that happens, because that makes the presenter seem insincere.”
• Facebook and the Secret Half Hour “I have an extraordinary relationship with those guys. [on Facebook]. I constantly get stuff from them that i then use in the programme and in that section of the show. I feel like i almost know the audience. Social media kind of brings you closer to the people you are talking to. In the last couple of years i feel my relationship has changed. as part of the instant feedback thing. I now feel closer to them.”
• Incorporating users ideas. “SMS. Texts feel a bit more impersonal. [than Twitter, Facebook] Basically i get the listeners to write the show because they are funnier than you. The advantage to me is i think it makes the audience it bit more loyal. You feel a bit closer to them they feel closer to you. its quite easy to lose listeners. if you use these things properly the audience becomes more sticky. You can make people care”
• Visualising Radio. “What they did cleverly [for Simon Mayo] was not try and make it look like a tv show and it worked well for big guests. But for those programmes with just a presenter speaking its “not a great visual experience.”
• Audioboo “The sound quality is better than you would expect it to be. If i was a witness to a breaking news event I can now record a report and share it with a station. Thats exciting.”
• Presenter power “A grey area has opened up. Sometimes i’ll RT an article that i find interesting without passing comment.The janmoir article i was quite fascinated about. A couple of days later I hosted a radio discussion [about it].Had I [by posting tweets] became compromised about a discussion i might be hosting ?