This April, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom announced his candidacy for governor via Twitter (image via VentureBeat).

As a former journalist, I can assure you that 99.9 percent of press releases are far, far too long. Contrast the average 750-word beast with this short and to-the-point pitch: “Bcuz I Love U, I want u to be the first to know the title of my new album ‘Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel’ Its very personal & dedicated to u.”

That’s the tweet that singer Mariah Carey used to debut her new album – the latest in a continuing trend of companies and public figures making major announcements through their Twitter feeds and other short-form, opt-in media.

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