The Independent and Tweetminster team up to launch Twitter-based service

The Independent has announced a partnership with Tweetminster, a web-based service that allows people to follow MPs and UK politics on Twitter, to launch a media utility that uses the power of Twitter to connect people the politicians, commentators and media stories that shape UK politics.

Available at wire.tweetminster.co.uk , the service, called Livewire , works with an internet browser, and allows users to track the tweets of MPs and Prospective Parliamentary Candidates, as well as follow political journalists, comentators and news sources from mainstream media to blogs.

Filtering relevant tweets in real time around trending topics on Twitter, Livewire also recommends new users and helps discover new content, all while acting as typical Twitter client through which users can follow friends and tweet their own observations . A built-in search engine lets you browse tweets by politician, party or source, and the service includes insight and analytical tools which users of a stastical bent can employ to determine the occurence of terms over time and help understand the sentiment around issues, real-time trends and popular links. The free service is supported by advertising and users can login using their Twitter log-in.

Jimmy Leach, editorial director for digital at The Independent, said “This is a great step forward in aggregating the latest whispers from the corridors of power and influence. Tweetminster have developed a fantastic system for eavesdropping on the great and the not-so-good and our users and fellow twitterers can now engage and involve themselves. It’s a very exciting project.”

Alberto Nardelli, Co-founder of Tweetminster said: “We’re delighted to be launching the Tweetminster Livewire today, and honoured to be doing so with The Independent as a partner. Together, we’re pushing the boundaries of what newspapers do, and more importantly we are bringing people closer to politicians and to the heart of political debate, helping politicians and politics to become more approachable, open, and social.”