St. Olaf's Twitter account has an impersonator
I read this article yesterday about how college presidents around the country were being impersonated on Twitter. (It's in my link roundup today.) People apparently create accounts -- often satirical accounts -- with a president's name and then post snarky or goofy (and sometimes serious) comments.
Then, while writing about St. Olaf College yesterday, I got a message from school spokesman David Gonnerman, who may have seen that my post was picked up by St. Olaf's Twitter account.
Or not:
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Just so you know, this (which isn't badly done) isn't our official Twitter account. This is.
(I checked it out -- and sheepishly realized that I'd been following the wrong site. But after reading the article, I can take comfort in the fact that I'm not the only one who's been hosed.)
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The Real McCoy
The account displays the mantra "Let's go Oles! Um! Yah! Yah!" and spits out an assortment of college-related tweets and bits of news. It's not really a parody account, but gives the feel of a pep rally at times, compared to the more professional, official account:
Lol! RT @Magmats: St. Olaf quad + 65 degrees = PASTY FLESH EVERYWHEREEEEEE
Alright all, you caught us - Emma Watson really is transferring to St. Olaf!!! OMG! (cc: @RobertsEmma) #AprilFools
There should be no question!! RT @HarleeSuperstar: Accepted Colleges: Oberlin, Bard, Brandeis, St. Olaf...#FML WHERE DO I GO?
I asked Gonnerman who'd set it up and whether the account ever created problems, and he told me:
I don't know who set this one up, but I suspect it might be a student. No problems yet, and I've even retweeted some of its material.
So do any other Minnesota colleges and universities have unofficial accounts?