While most of the Internet users in Cambodia are on networking site Facebook, “Twitter is growing in leaps and bounds,” said a founder of TweetCambodia, which aggregates tweets with hashtag #cambodia.
“Cambodia has a very phone-centric culture and that’s suited well to Twitter use. We are seeing a lot more sophistication in the use of it, including the use of Khmer Unicode which is particularly interesting,” John Weeks added.
With 800 people following his micro-blogging account on Twitter, John Weeks admitted that followers seek out “content and opinion. That’s probably why my follow list is smaller than the @PhnomPenhPost, or entertainers like @MeasSokSophea”.
Despite “Facebook is more entertaining with tons of applications and Cambodian people like them, Twitter user Y Samphy says “A lot of breaking news about Cambodia also can be found on Twitter first. For example, twits about Cambodia stampede at Koh Pich while it was happening were lightening fast”.
In an email response, John Weeks also said that “Earlier this year much of the discussion over the alleged blocking of KI-Media was driven via Twitter. I expect to see Twitter grow as a tool for sourcing and sharing news. But it can also spread rumors like wildfire. How do you fact-check and verify a tweet?”