The Norlonto Review

ANDY MURRAY ON TWITTER. Having just been told in no uncertain terms that I’ll never be an expert in online advertising and got some private news by text message that I just know must never be repeated in public, I guess this is as good a time to comment on Scottish tennis player Andy Murray’s use of Twitter.

Here’s what he has to say:

I’d had plenty of rest anyway, with Sunday being a quiet day after play was abandoned because of the rain. The most exciting things that happened while we waited around were a quick game of table tennis with Tsonga, and a Twitter conversation about karaoke with Novak [Djokovik], Serena [Williams] and a few others.

That can really help when you’re waiting around because you need to do stuff, talk to people and just take your mind off playing something like the final at Queen’s or a big match at Wimbledon.

I get quite involved in Twitter – I think it’s important for the sport that people see the other side of the players, and the fact that a lot of us get on well. I know sometimes that might not appeal to everyone, if they want to see a few more fights and some arguing on court, but there are a lot of nice people on the tour on the women’s and the men’s side.

Obviously, I need to be a bit careful and think about what I say on Twitter or Facebook, and I always try to be very positive because I really don’t understand why people go on just to slam others or be negative. I never talk badly about people on there, I just try to enjoy it and let people know what I’m up to, or if there’s something funny happening.

Of course, Murray is rather better paid than most politicians or media types, but events in recent weeks have shown how someone who developed a reputation for being “brattish” would seem to be a lot wiser about using communications tools than say, a certain member of the US House of Representatives.

But the article also shows how judicious use of Twitter is being used to project positive images about people and brands. In other words, propaganda.

Which is precisely the sort of thing the media and commentators generally need to watch out for.

On the tennis: I thought Andy Murray would win a Gland Slam event soon, but not Wimbledon first, if at all. Winning the Queen’s club championship for the second time in three years makes me think I could be wrong. If you can find a betting website that has no hyped up British customers dragging the odds down, might be worth an eachway bet (to make the final).