The Hill News

Just as New England congressmen need to be up on their fishing and Midwestern congressmen up on their farming, the representative of Silicon Valley needs to be up on technology.

Rep. Michael Honda (D-Calif.) certainly is. Since October 2008, he has been a prolific tweeter. On Twitter, @RepMikeHonda has 6,089 followers. He is also co-chairman of the Democrats’ New Media Working Group, which holds events to get members more engaged with social media including Twitter and Facebook.

Honda told The Hill his promotion of new media means confronting attitudes much like the one he once had.

“Before I was in politics I used to say, a lot of people used to say, the only time we see politicians is during the campaign and when you want money,” Honda said. “So one of the things I’ve always tried to do is adjust in my mind the way I do busi! ness.”

Honda writes tweets himself and also uses tweets written by his staff to reach out to constituents. He called Twitter “a good technique of personalizing politics and personalizing a presence with other people.”

Honda is the only member of Congress to win six consecutive Gold Mouse awards from the nonprofit Congressional Management Foundation. The award is given to the members of Congress who relate best to their constituents online.

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