There are two Web sites that make it incredibly easy to find journalists on Twitter: Media on Twitter and Muck Rack.

Both sites offer an easy and quick way to find journalists on Twitter, who you may be interested in following. While Media on Twitter lists more journalists on its site, Muck Rack is particularly useful during breaking news and times you’re interested in real-time information.

Ever wish there was a way to organize your chaotic Twitter stream into a series of columns, one with pictures, one with replies, one with retweets, one with generic chatter, and even one with potential story ideas?

Yes, there’s Tweetdeck for those familiar with Twitter, but now there’s a new option out there, designed with the journalist in mind: JournoTwit.

Live tweets from an event are a great way to catch people’s attention and build a following. Especially if they’re done right.

I’ve live tweeted several events, most notably Barack Obama’s Inauguration in D.C. for my student newspaper and the Chicago Sun-Times. I walked into those experiences learning on the fly, and there’s a lot I wish I knew then that I know now. So here’s a collection of tips.

Like anything, Twitter has its advantages and disadvantages. Whether you’re new to Twitter or not, it’s important you’re able to identify these and adjust to use Twitter in the best ways possible.

Here’s a list of pros and cons of the service, specifically with journalists in mind. Feel free to add to it by leaving a comment or replying to @TwitJourn.

Lance Ulanoff said it best in his column at PCMag.com: “As I watched this unfold, I likened Twitter to a bad game of telephone.”

He’s referring to Thursday, June 25, when breaking news of Michael Jackson being rushed to a hospital and later the announcement of his death took Twitter by storm for hours, while rumors surfaced of Jeff Goldblum and Harrison Ford’s deaths as well.

Tonight I had the chance to meet Rick Murray, president of Edelman Digital, a division of Edelman that specializes in digital communication and social media outreach. He says there’s a new 24-hour news cycle and media companies must adapt.

“Today news is broken on Twitter, guaranteed. Then it goes to the Web site, and then the newspaper,” he said. “You have to know this because this is where things are going.”

Twitter is the great equalizer. It doesn’t matter if you have 100 followers or 10,000, you can break news. That’s because all tweets are recorded and indexed at search.twitter.com. If someone types the right keyword(s), they can find your tweet.

Breaking Tweets prides itself on giving many different types of Twitterers credit for breaking news, whether it be someone in Honduras with a dozen followers recording the first “earthquake” tweet or a news organization providing the first details of a major story.

But how do you know a tweet’s legitimate?

The longer you’re on Twitter, the more spam and power user accounts will start following you. While it’s tempting to follow back out of courtesy, be careful not to follow too many and clutter your Twitter stream. Before you follow anyone, you should ask yourself – are this person’s tweets of interest to me?

At the same time, if you are tweeting from an official news account, you may want to follow everyone back in case someone would like to privately pass on a tip through a direct message.

If you pull up the latest #IranElection tweets and sift through a couple pages, you’re sure to find them.

Retweets from Iran. Sometimes they say “RT from Iran,” others “RT Iran,” and others just “RT” with Iran elsewhere in the message. Unlike normal retweets, they don’t include the name of the original Twitterer for their protection and safety.

That begs the question – Are they reliable?

The following tip is from Nathaniel Miller (@journalistnate), Online Content Editor at The Sacramento Bee:

1. 
   journalistnate Tip for media pros new to twitter: Make sure to respond to @ replys. It helps you gain Twitter karma and builds your brand. 22 Jun 2009 from TweetDeck

He added that journalists should respond to replies for another reason too: “It may be the first time the other user has ever spoken to a journalist. They’ll get giddy over the back and forth.”