Who Do Members of Congress Follow on Twitter?

Twitter has become such an integral medium for political communication that, according to our count, 97 percent of members of Congress now have an official Twitter presence. But Twitter is a two-way street — you spread your message, and you listen to what others have to say. So who are members of the House and Senate (or, doubtless more often, their staffs) listening to on Twitter?

Daily Intelligencer decided to find out: With help from the wizards at Twiangulate, we identified every congressional Twitter account, then analyzed which other accounts they follow most often. Topping the overall list of most followed accounts are four DC-based political news outlets, which, thanks to their bipartisan appeal, are followed by around 60 percent of members of Congress. But taking a look at the top twenty accounts divided by party shows zero overlap beyond The Hill, Politico, Roll Call, and CSPAN. Although they like a few of the same publications, Democrats and Republicans tend to lack interest in ... each other. President Barack Obama is only the eighth most-followed account among Democrats in Congress, which seems odd. On the Republican side, Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), apparently the world's most interesting tweeter, is hogging two spots in the top ten. Mike Allen, the Politico Playbook scribe is not only the most followed journalist among members of Congress as a whole, but he also tops both the Democratic and Republican charts. Chuck Todd, Chad Pergram, Jake Tapper, Chris Cillizza, and David Gregory also enjoy relatively robust followings from both sides of the House. Republicans are following @RedState and @Drudge_report more than they’re following @AP or @nytimes. Democrats, meanwhile, are keeping close tabs on multiple NPR accounts.