It's an election year, if you hadn't heard, and that means it's time for social media gaffes — particularly on Twitter. But such embarrassing tweets are often deleted within minutes — which is why, after a brief hiatus, a site called Politwoops will once again be archiving them forever.
Politwoops originally launched in 2012, but had its wings clipped last year when Twitter revoked access to its internal data. But Twitter and the two organizations that run Politwoops arrived at an understanding in late December, the result of which is Tuesday's relaunch — just in time for the New Hampshire primary.
Related: Twitter to Restore Politwoops Archive of Politicians' Deleted Tweets
The brief grace period in which politicians could conceivably retract hastily posted reactions or embarrassing typos is over. Until further notice, every tweet a politician puts out will immediately be recorded for posterity and deleted ones will be kept online by Politwoops.
The Sunlight Foundation, which will host the U.S. version of the tool, will not curate which tweets are saved — so those shown on the site aren't meant to indicate dishonesty or fraud. It's just a public record of public statements that have, for one reason or another, been made private.
