Library of Congress Acquires Entire Twitter Archive, Google Offers “Twitter Replay”

If you didn’t think your random tweets were worth anything, think again. In a blog post today, the Library of Congress announced plans to digitally archive every tweet since Twitter’s inception. You heard it right.

Every. Single. Tweet.

Whether it’s spam for Viagra, a popular celebrity death hoax, or that random tweet about what you had for breakfast that one time, if it’s been shared publicly, it has now been deemed historically relevant. Crazy, right?

In other Twitter news, Google announced a major enhancement to the company’s real-time search tool that allows users to search the public archive of Twitter messages and “replay” conversations surrounding a certain topic. While the new feature rolls out globally, users will only be able to check tweets going back one month. In time, however, the feature will include the entire Twitter archive.

To me, the prospect of having every tweet you’ve ever written archived in the hallowed halls of the Library of Congress is pretty wild. The fact that Google can now index the entire public Twitter archive is likewise amazing. Do you think that with this news, folks out there are reconsidering some of the things they’ve shared on Twitter now?

Many people claim that “nobody is listening to what I say online anyway,” so what’s the big deal if they share funny pictures or inappropriate jokes? I think today’s announcements put that excuse to rest. As a culture, we have to get used to the idea that everything we share online could end up in the public record. To this end, it is important for individuals to establish a strong digital identity and proactively monitor it to protect their reputations online.

What do you think of the news from Google and the Library of Congress?