'Tweet4Schalit' campaign reaches No. 2 spot in Twitter

Social networking is a way to inspire change, says founder of Jewish Internet Defense Force.

By JOSIAH DANIEL RYAN, ELAN MILLER
gilad schalit 248 88 (photo credit: Courtesy)
gilad schalit 248 88
(photo credit: Courtesy)
The name of captive IDF soldier Gilad Schalit became the second most discussed subject on the popular social networking site Twitter for most of Wednesday, thanks in part to a campaign organized by the Jewish Internet Defense Force to mark the soldier's 23rd birthday on Friday. Twitter users drove Schalit's name to the second highest trend by including the tag "GiladSchalit" to their "tweets" which according to Twitter rules must be messages containing 140 characters or less. "Social networking is a way to inspire change and raise awareness and we plan to do just that," David Appletree, founder of the Jewish Internet Defense Force which organized the "Tweet4Schalit," told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday. "We don't have to look any further than the Iran election to see Twitter's potential to accomplish this." Tweets for Schalit ranged from the demand "Free Schalit" to requests for international supervision of the case. "Petition: Get the Red Cross to Visit Gilad Schalit," to commentary on the political reality of the case, "But we shouldn't forget that the VERY HOPEFUL release of Gilad Schalit is going to have a price." Some tweets focused on the emotional aspect of the case: "Don't forget Gilad Schalit could be you or me," read one Tweet. According to the JIDF Web site dozens of organizations - including Lubavitch and the Zionist Federation of the UK - joined its campaign.