Northern Ireland forms new govt 1 tweet at a time
(AP) -- Chalk up another first for Twitter: It's now helped to form a whole government.
The five parties in Northern Ireland's government took turns Friday picking the government departments they want to lead for the next four-year term. And they announced their choices to the world and each other live via the social media platform.
The major Protestant party, the Democratic Unionists, went first and chose the powerful Finance Department. The Irish nationalist Sinn Fein went second and chose Education. Within a half-hour all 10 government ministries were parceled out.
It's reckoned to be the first time that any government has used Twitter as the vehicle for managing its formation.
More information: Northern Ireland Executive live picks, http://twitter.com/(number sign/hash)!/niexecutive
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