'Twitter' growing in popularity with county governments

When the government of Pingyao county, Shanxi province, opened an account on Sina Weibo, the Chinese version of "twitter" last Sept, it gained rapidly in popularity, so much so that, In three months' time, it now ranks among the top five of similar scenic spots in number of followers, comments, and Internet engagements.

The decision to open an official online account, the government says, is because it wants to make government more transparent to better serve the public with more detailed information. The county began its online contacts with the public on World Tourism Day, Sept 27 by providing tourist information such as the hours of operation, local performances, exhibitions, as well as lost property information, with other online activities planned to engage its followers.