Twitter as Prisoner's Dilemma?

Some interesting thoughts here, based on Rep. Anthony Weiner's "issues," about whether Twitter usage doesn't reflect elements of the classical philosophical word game/puzzle.

Players of Twitter risk their reputations, their careers and their relationships. But incentives to keep playing Twitter abound, too, as Weiner discovered. ... By following back some of his most ardent fans, the way a teen idol might oblige his fans with signed photos, and otherwise working the apparatus of Twitter to drive up his followers and get a hearing for his issues, he managed to create an online persona using the same tricks — digital versions of gerrymandering, triangulating and earmark — that politicians use. Twitter handsomely rewards those with a capacity for risk and an aptitude for the social sciences, especially economics, game theory, psychology and sociology.

Interesting indeed. But, correct?

I think the column tries to make out Twitter, and its use, to be far more than what it actually is. It's a personalized headline writing service. There's no conscious use of it in a Prisoner's Dilemma type way for 99 percent of its users. And, even most mega-users don't consciously use it in this way, either. So ... interesting ... but wrong.