NYT Pitchbot, a Twitter bot that tweets satirical comments on the New York Times website, has landed on some controversial subjects. It tweeted the title “Dems In Disarray” over 400 times in one day. The bot was so obvious that even John Cole, Balloon Juice’s editor, called it “ridiculous”. Although the NYT Pitchbot has been around a while, it’s been removed from the online comments section.
The bot has a following, and its followers seem to take special delight in its “naughty” tweets. Its contrast with the “Old Gray Lady” image of The Times has likely been a contributing factor to its success. Twitter followers, meanwhile, are drawn to words relating to food and LGBT issues.
NYT Pitchbot