If you can't beat it, fake it - A new phenomenon of imaginary Formula One tweeting
Published by Christine
I know a lot of people have managed to avoid being sucked into the land of Twitter, and I applaud you. I also suggest you do not continue to read this post as it's another one of those annoying blog entries about how cool fitting things into 140 characters is.
Sidepodcast has had a love/hate relationship with the Twitterverse for a while, ever since March 2007 where we signed up thinking it would be nothing more than a fad. Two years, and a brief trip to Identica and back, and it's fair to say we are hooked.
Twitter is useful for connecting to users when the site fails, for discussing things outside Sidepodcast's scope (as if there is such a thing anymore), and for finding out useful snippets from other people. James Allen and Lee McKenzie are often sources of paddock gossip, and it's good to discuss F1 with an entirely different set of people.
Recently, a new genre of Twitter has emerged and it is 100% proud to be fake. Posing as Formula 1 drivers, team bosses, and F1 big-wigs, the fake Twitterers are gradually taking over. At first, the number of microposts was overwhelming, but as the novelty has now died down, we're seeing some fabulous gems cropping up.
Here's an example of a conversation I had with Fake Jarno Trulli:
I listen to your podcast on plane to Bahrain (I made a rhyme!), it is excellent, but needs more Jarno in it!
fakejarnotrulli
Ah. We will possibly need to see more crashes like at Shanghai then. They're good for a few minutes discussion.
Pah, I will give you something far better, a win! No more crashing for Jarno!
If you win, promise to make you a special jingle and everything.
Hooray! As I said to my engineer a few years back in Turkey, 'I'm a pushing like a hell!' That's how much I'm going for it!
Then Trulli took pole position, and I told myself not to make anymore rash promises on Twitter.
Mr C also had a good conversation with Fake Sébastien Buemi when the (fake) Swiss joined the site:
Not impressed with @sidepodcast laughing at me: http://is.gd/rN7d (1:08 in) nooooo.
you almost linked to the right one, you were so close, three episodes out... nooooo
Of course, the fake universe may not be everyone's cup of tea, and I don't think all of it is worth paying attention to. But occasionally there are snippets of genius, and let's face it, it's the closest we're going to get to chatting with an F1 driver on Twitter.
A full list of the fake drivers and company is available here and I recommend following one or two, if only to watch from a safe distance. I'm wondering if it's only a matter of time before we start to see more fake accounts. Fake Sidepodcast, anyone?
