Twitter, reference information, swine flu

As in other emergency situations in recent years, Twitter has become a key source of information for its more than 10 million users, as the news reached him many times before the media.

Some of the major television networks have used Twitter in recent days to support its coverage of the pandemic with opinions or first hand experiences of their audiences. "Will the swine flu something to do with the war between Mexican cartels?" Asks a twittero "whose message was shown last night by CNN.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) in the U.S. is also using Twitter to communicate the latest information about the virus and the most effective measures for its prevention. Meanwhile, in Boston, two doctors from Children's Hospital in the city have combined the services of Google and Twitter to create an online map in real-time reporting of influenza cases reported around the world.

The map became operational on Sunday with about 50 users, but on Tuesday, already had over 2,300. This service accounted for 170 confirmed cases of swine flu in the entire world, including 34 in the U.S., two in Spain and one in Argentina, among others. But while some of the information posted on Twitter is useful, many other messages as alarmist or contribute to spreading misinformation.