Twitter: The 2009 Version of the Emergency Broadcast System?

Twitter (the now-famous microblogging site) has experienced epic growth over the past year.  Numbers like “1382% growth” are usually reserved for “must buy” penny stock faxes, and the potential for Detroit Lions wins vs. last year (no matter what year), but the numbers can’t be ignored.  Twitter has captured the interest of millions of people who are making it their giant, worldwide chat room via their laptops or PDA’s.

But what’s the long-term plan for Twitter? Approaching 10,000,000 users, its bandwidth requirements could challenge the pocketbook of even the most angelic of angel investors. 

Does it run ads like Facebook?  Brief commercials like some video sites? Will people subscribe to it like Napster?  Impressions and click-throughs are being utilized with other sites, search engines, and online newspapers with mostly unimpressive results.  Is there an idea out there that hasn’t yet been introduced?

Here’s one.

Here in flooded Fargo, North Dakota, we found out firsthand how Twitter can be an essential means of communication in a crisis. It was very effective in letting people know where volunteers were needed, at providing emergency phone numbers, and sharing photos and videos of the event. It proved itself as more than just a social network—it was an emergency network . Given that, could Twitter be the 2009 version of the Emergency Broadcast/Alert System? And if it is, could it be effectively publicly-funded such as the “911” system is now?

In the past, government regulation has usually meant two things: bankruptcy and complication.  But any business model created for Twitter is going to mean some compromise to its ease-of use and simplicity. Maybe a Web 2.0 solution to an aging EAS system that is too reliant on TV and radio should be considered.