The Twitter Book

When via is better than RT

Retweeting is a blessing and a curse. It can help important news spread in the blink of an eye. But it also can turn your Twitter feed into a noisy stream of redundant updates.

The problem is that, especially in many of the third-party Twitter clients, it's just too easy to retweet. You see a good link. You want to pass it on. You hit the RT button in Twhirl or Tweetdeck, then send.

Oops. Even if you've passed along something of value, it might have been even more valuable if you'd taken the time to put your own spin on it and say why you found the link valuable. (Of course, you'd still want to give credit for the original link.)

So pause before you retweet, and write a note that tells the world what this link means to you. Then use via to tell the world who showed you the link in the first place. (Via is also great for giving credit when you got a link from a source who isn't on Twitter.)

In an ideal world, use literal retweets only when the original phrasing is unique and a key part of what you want to pass on. A straight retweet should show the character of the person making the original posting, not just a link.

Unless, of course, it's news that's just so hot that you have to pass it on before it burns your keyboard.