Tweeting in adversity: Elliot Morley

By Mark Pack | Fri 15th May 2009 - 11:21 am

Last year I wrote about blogging in adversity:

When things go wrong or bad news breaks, it can be tempting to hunker down and say nothing. If you’re a blogger, particularly one who allows comments, the idea of having to write something for your blog can be very off-putting. The thought of ignoring the keyboard and just wishing that time would move on more quickly can be very alluring.

But is that the right response? It is a situation on which I have advised various people over the years, and nearly always the best advice is actually, “keep blogging”.

The same logic applies to other online presences, such as Twitter. It’s a lesson that under-fire Labour MP Elliot Morley could have applied.

Elliott Morley has been in the news for claiming £16,000 in mortgage expenses after the mortgage had been paid off. He’s been on Twitter for a while, but rather than use this outlet to apologise or to explain, he at first simply went quiet as Croydonian spotted. Elliot Morley has since sent one tweet, but it’s not up to much:

Dreadful day cant wait to put my side of the story now gone away for a few days

Leaving aside the appalling / trendy punctuation (delete as appropriate), it just prompts the questions, “Why not tell us your side now?” and “Are you sorry?” and by neither explaining nor apologising makes himself look worse.

Vince Cable writes: Drill, baby, drill…or not

Lib Dems must do better on Burnham

Britain should be proud, but never afraid of the stranger

Lib Dem Women: Amplifying women’s voices at Conference