The Hill News

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) is leading the way when it comes to House Republicans on new media. As co-chair of the Republican New Media Caucus, she gives tutorials to new members and encourages fellow members of Congress in best practices for their social media use. She is also a trailblazer on new media tools: She was among the first House Republicans to join the popular virtual scrapbooking site Pinterest earlier this year.

Along the way, she has also developed her own social media style. She told The Hill about it in this week's "Follow Friday" Q&A. 

A: I have Twitter's mobile app installed on my BlackBerry. Throughout the week, when I'm between votes or meetings, I'll tweet the highlights of my day. I also try to send interesting links to my staff, who help with some of the posting.

Q: When did you join Twit! ter?

A: I joined Twitter December 8, 2008. At that time, only about 30 percent of House Republicans were on Twitter. After taking on the charge from leadership to get GOP Members up-to-speed online, we've made significant progress. Today, about 85 percent of our Members are on Twitter.

Q: What do you see as the most significant purpose of Twitter for you?

A: For me, Twitter is a way to connect and engage with constituents, both inside and outside my daily duties. It's also a great listening tool.

Q: Example of a "best" Twitter moment?

A: Best moment was announcing my pregnancy, and then birth of my daughter, Grace Blossom, in a tweet!

Q: Example of a "worst" Twitter moment?

A: Worst moment was learning that [Rep.] Gabby Giffords (D-Ariz.) had been shot in Arizona, and reading the awful news reports in real-time.

Follow McMorris Rodgers on Twitter @cathymcmorris, where she currently has 10,172 followers.

Previous "Follow Friday” Twitter profiles have included Democratic Reps. Jan Schakowsky (Ill.), Mike Honda(Calif.), Jim Himes (Conn.), Rush Holt (N.J.), Jared Polis (Colo.) and Judy Chu (Calif.) and Republican Reps. Bob Latta(Ohio), Glenn Thompson (Pa.), John Shimkus (Ill.), David Schweikert (Ariz.), Dana Rohrabacher(Calif.), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (Fla.), Billy Long (Mo.) and Paul Gosar (Ariz.), as well as the Republican-ledHouse Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.