It looks like Twitter has just hired its first government liaison. New Twitter employee Katie Jacobs Stanton just Tweeted that Adam Sharp will be joining the company to help the “government better communicate with constituents.” Sharp confirmed his employment as well.
Twitter tells us that Sharp’s official title will be Manager, Government and Political Partnerships. Sharp joined Twitter from C-SPAN, where he was the executive producer of digital services. At C-SPAN, Sharp oversaw the editorial content on C-SPAN.org and helped integrate social media into C-SPAN’s public affairs coverage and viewer engagement. He was also formerly a manager of eBusiness & Digitization at NBC News; Deputy Chief of Staff for Louisiana Senator Mary L. Landrieu and creative director and field producer at Alan Weiss Productions
Twitter had published a job post for the position earlier this year. In the role, Sharp will assist policymakers, politicians, and governmental bodies to use Twitter in their everyday activities. While Sharp will be based in Washington, DC, Twitter says the scope of his job will be global.
As we wrote in our initial coverage of the position, it’s not surprising that Twitter would want a presence in the Beltway. As more politicians flock to the microblogging network to engage with citizens, it makes sense for the company to have an evangelist to help aid this process. Sharp seems to have a background in both political media and U.S. politics, so he should be well equipped to guide politicians with how to use Twitter to their benefit. With the 2012 presidential elections ahead, Sharp should be plenty busy with politicians looking to use the platform as a communications and fundraising tool.
Facebook hired Andrew Noyes last year as a communications rep for the company, and opened up a D.C. office as well.