Who Does Twitter Love? Breaking Down The Twitter Suggested Users List

In some ways, it’s the Who’s Who of Twitter — the Twitter Suggested Users list. These are the 241 people Twitter currently suggests that new people should follow. Below, a look at who makes it by categories, such as media or sports. Who’s getting Twitter’s love (such as the New York Times) and who’s not (say most other newspapers).

To make the breakdown below, I used an account that was following no one on the Suggested Users List. That’s important, because if you follow someone, then they’ll no longer show (that’s why it seemed TechCrunch might have been dropped recently, but they weren’t).

NOTE (Sept. 22, 2009): About two weeks after this was originally written, it appears TechCrunch really was dropped from the list.

How to get on the list? Twitter blogged in March:

We’ve explained that the Suggested Users list is a bit like your local book store’s staff picks but there’s a little more to it than that. Our Chief Scientist developed a program that scans active Twitter accounts for a bunch of key ingredients such as how much of the profile is filled out, certain indications that the account is interesting to others in some respects, and a few other signals.

This program then generates a list of potentially interesting Twitter accounts that myself and some product team folks here at Twitter take a look at for another set of criteria. For example, is the account a good introduction to Twittering for a new user? Does the person or organization running the account have a fairly wide or mainstream appeal? If they are a celebrity or business, have we confirmed it’s really them?

Finally, we’ll do a gut check internally with a couple folks before adding them to the Suggested Users list. The list continues to grow and change although only a subset of twenty accounts are randomly displayed as suggestions during the new user signup process. Twitter is not paid to include accounts in this list. The Suggested Users feature exists to do a job—it makes Twitter more relevant and valuable to users. All that being said, when we find out Oprah starts Twittering for real we may very well put her on the list.

After having been to each and every one of these accounts, certainly plenty of them don’t seem to have that widespread appeal in terms of content. Beyond that, two or three of them aren’t in English, which won’t appeal much to non-English speakers. Conversely, Twitter has a huge audience that doesn’t speak English, so having virtually all the people listed Twittering solely in English also isn’t that appealing.

Certainly Twitter thinks things could improve. Evan Williams has an interesting discussion on FriendFeed back in May looking for suggestions. After now having reviewed the list in depth, I come away feeling as I commented in that thread:

For one thing, you could expand the list and randomize who you show by category. For instance, the New York Times is suggested. Why not alternative a newspaper account among a variety of top providers — Wall St. Journal, LA Times and so on? Is there more than one mommy blogger to be represented other than Heather Armstrong? Just how many celebrities do you need to suggest? Do People and InStyle both need to be on the list? Is Gavin Newsom really that relevant to the vast majority of your users who don’t live in San Francisco or aren’t residents of California?

Group people into categories; build your own directory of users behind it (heck, tap into Wefollow if you don’t want to do it). But you clearly are doing it, so maybe let people choose topics they’re interested in (celebrities, news, etc) similar to what Google Reader does.

Or, you already somehow magically populate accounts based on email addresses with others that seem relevant to a particular person. Use the “invite/find” others you know idea rather than suggested people.

Finally, you could have people do some searches — enter a few words they are interested in — and pull people back that way. Bottom line, I can see the advantage to suggested users. But broaden it out — give more people a chance to be included in it, even rank-and-file low follow users.

For more background on the suggested users list, I also recommend these two newspaper articles:

• Twitter’s ‘suggested users’ get mammoth boost from new feature, Los Angeles Times, Feb. 20, 2009
• The Tweet Smell of Success, New York Times, June 14, 2009

In my breakdown, I’ve listed people within each category in the order of follower count. In the regular list, they are NOT divided into categories, and new additions seem to flow into the bottom of the list. Being at the top of the list would seem an advantage — a longer period to get followers, more chance you might be checked off. However, I found plenty of people “low” on the list who still had more followers than those higher up.

Next to each person on the list, I’ve shown their current follower count and the current description they give for themselves. Which leads to a side point. Some people really need to get more descriptive about describing themselves.

Jimmy Fallon? I’m not a late night TV talk show watcher. Telling me “Snork” as your description sort of loses a shot of letting me know when you’re actually on, what network, all that stuff I don’t know off the top of my head. Kevin Rudd, you’re “PM” — that’s of Australia, right?

In contrast, Bob Vila does a nice combination of acknowledging many people will know his fame by name (“Twitter home of BobVila”) but also educates those that don’t (“the leading site for the do-it-yourself community giving homeowners all the information they need to get the job done).

On to the breakdown:

Actors & Other Celebrities

Making up 18% of the list, this category lumps together actors, some directors, TV personalities and others that I felt were prominent enough to warrant a “celebrity” classification. I’m sure my conclusions aren’t perfect. Apologies to any “celebrities” I failed to name. I blame my own poor lack of popular culture knowledge, in these cases.

It’s hard to draw any particular patterns from this list other than having been in a Star Trek series or either Comedy Central’s Daily Show or Colbert Report might slightly increase your odds of being listed :)

Here’s everyone in this group, in order of followers:

• ashton kutcher: (2,794,082) I make stuff, actually I make up stuff, stories mostly, collaborations of thoughts, dreams, and actions. Thats me.
• Ellen DeGeneres (2,490,961) Find Ellen’s monologue, celebrity photos and videos, games, giveaways, how to get tickets and more on The Ellen Show website.
• Ryan Seacrest (1,723,675): Get official tweets from Ryan and his producers about the radio shows, American Idol and breaking news from Hollywood!
• Kim Kardashian (1,603,990) Armenian Princess
• Demi Moore (1,551,637)
• Jimmy Fallon (1,532,673): Snork.
• Chelsea Lately (1,074,235): Comedian, TV personality and Author Chelsea Handler hosts The Chelsea Lately Show on E!
• RainnWilson (1,068,582): I am an actor and a writer and I co-created SoulPancake and my son, Walter.
• Dr. Drew (1,053,202): Board Certified, MD
• Martha Stewart (1,046,553): curious,inquisitive,experimental entrepreneur who cares about the world we live in
• Pete Wentz (1,032,887): the official pete wentz twitter. bass, clothes, mischief
• Tony Robbins (977,378): The Official Tony Robbins Account
• KevinSmith (965,409) In NY directing A COUPLE OF DICKS. Not into my mouth, mind you; talking about a Bruce Willis/Tracy Morgan flick I’m shooting. Into my mouth.
• Wil Wheaton (959,372) I’m just this guy, you know?
• Penn Jillette (935,437): PennSays, P&T: Bullshit!, more than half (by weight) of Penn & Teller
• Dane Cook (930,061): Shhh I’m Shhh’ing
• LeVar Burton (888,822) Actor, Director, Educator
• Joel McHale (876,385): Host of “The Soup” on !E
• Giuliana Rancic (862,154): TV Host/Wife/Chick
• Michael Ian Black (860,287): The Official Michael Ian Black Twitter Page
• Kevin Spacey (772,531) Former shoe salesman now making a go at film and theater. Wish me luck…
• Brent Spiner (736,366)
• greggrunberg (727,812): 4th Year Mind Reader
• rob corddry (699,161): I am a gentleman
• The Real Paula Abdul (691,833): The Real Paula Abdul – American pop singer, dancer, choreographer, actress and television personality.
• Chris Hardwick (668,757): I am Chris Hardwick and these are my Tweets!
• Denise Richards (663,137): Actress
• Stephen [Colbert] (657,847)
• Eddie Izzard (650,332): I’m a British European, I think like an American and I was born in an Arabic country
• Danny Glover (646,267) Actor, Director, Producer, Political Activist
• BobVila.com (563,787): The Twitter home of BobVila.com, the leading site for the do-it-yourself community giving homeowners all the information they need to get the job done.
• Gossip Girl (531,177): You know you love me, so why aren’t you following me? XoXo
• Peter Facinelli (516,571): Actor from Twilight, New Moon, Nurse Jackie and more… Yes, this is MY OFFICIAL TWITTER…
• Kevin Nealon (511,686): Accommodator/Apologist/Passive Aggressor
• steve agee (492,876): That dude from the Sarah Silverman Program. Yeah, him.
• paulfeig (490,487): Paul is a guy who wears suits and tries not to screw things up. He also created Freaks and Geeks.
• Mindy Kaling (411,774): writer/performer/shopper
• Ethan Suplee (391,254): Formerly I made a living on television pretending to be someone vastly more intelligent than I actually am…
• Rob Riggle (383,111): Actor, Comedian, Writer, U.S. Marine
• David Harris (352,475): David Harris is a performer and teacher at Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in LA. A member of Last Day of School, he performs every Thursday night at 11pm
• Suze Orman (345,870) Emmy Award Winning TV Show Host, Number One NYTimes Best Selling Author, Motivational Speaker and America’s Most Trusted Personal Finance Expert
• Kyle and Jackie O (294,145) Australia’s #1 radio show who always get into trouble coz of what they say on twitter! U were warned:-)
• Luciano Huck (275,440): apresentador de tv
• Jeremy Piven (226,632): Jeremy Piven

Animals

• Sockamillion (866,158): I am Jason Scott’s Cat.
• PEOPLEPets.com (321,656): Meet celebrity pets, see the cutest photos and create your pet’s profile!

Astronauts & Space

It’s a growing category! Buzz Aldrin just joined Twitter and so only recently was added to the Suggested Users List.

• Mike Massimino (662,036): NASA astronaut, mission specialist for STS-125
• AstrobiologyNAI (350,189): NASA Astrobiology Institute: we study life in the Universe!
• Buzz Aldrin (121,634) Astronaut, Apollo XI, Gemini 12, Doctorate from MIT in astronautics, married to Lois Aldrin for 21 years. Korean War veteran – fighter pilot of 66 missions

Athletes, Sports & Gaming

Making up 10% of the list, those involved with compiling the list really seem to like basketball. In order of followers:

• THE_REAL_SHAQ (1,674,118) VERY QUOTATIOUS, I PERFORM RANDOM ACTS OF SHAQNESS
• Lance Armstrong (1,437,970): 7-time Tour de France winner, full time cancer fighter – LIVESTRONG!
• Tony Hawk (1,147,997): Professional skateboarder, dad, videogame character, husband, ceo, kid chauffeur
• NBA (994,788): News and notes directly from the NBA. Find out as soon as Amazing Happens!
• FragDolls (836,671): Ubisoft’s all-girl professional gaming team. We’re passionate about video games and geek culture, and love to see more women playing and making games.
• Paul Pierce (741,825): The one and only Truth, Paul Pierce of the Boston Celtics
• A. Jo. Martin (687,119) Work with Shaquille O’Neal and other athletes/brands to grow their digital brands. Known for zany ideas like Random Acts of Shaqness and measuring the results.
• Serena Williams (643975): This is the official Serena Williams twitter page.
• NFL (634,714): Official Site of the National Football League
• Los Angeles Lakers (620,300): Official Twitter Feed of the Los Angeles Lakers
• Dwight Howard (609,731): After the ring!
• Stewart Cink (538,846): UST AxivCore shaft in driver and 3wood, UST Attas shaft in 5wood, X100 in all irons
• Ryan Sheckler (531,243): Professional Skateboarder
• Mano Menezes (513,831)
• joe sebok (513,253): professional poker player, president of PokerRoad.com, searcher of the ultimate ride, and lover of peanut butter and jelly.
• Nick Swisher (495,498): The official Twitter of Nick Swisher, NY Yankees
• Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (456,427): NBA’s All-Time Leading Scorer
• Bill Simmons (439,388): I write ESPN’s Sports Guy column + host the BS Report podcast. My new book (The Book of Basketball) comes out on 10/27.
• John Calipari (421,390): The official twitter page of University of Kentucky Head Men’s Basketball Coach John Calipari
• Ali Nejad (332,653): Host of NBC’s Poker After Dark and Face the Ace. Fox News Red Eye panelist. Hater of haters…wait…
• Orlando Magic (283,560): This is the official Twitter of the Orlando Magic.
• Ian Poulter (264,891): Global tour golfer, play pgatour & europeantour. Massive Arsenal fan and also Orlando Magic fan. Love all Sports, Cars, most of all love my Family time
• Dana White:(125,601): [UFC]
• MLB (64,170): Major League Baseball’s Official Twitter! 100 verified MLB Tweeps at https://www.mlb.com/connect (just choose your team’s logo!)
• BarryZ (NO COUNT: ACCOUNT NO LONGER WORKS BUT IS STILL LISTED BY TWITTER) Pitching is my main source of fun

Businesses & Organizations

You’ve got a mixture of business that sell to consumers (Dell), charities (charity water), airlines (JetBlue and Southwest) and companies like Google. By follower count:

• A Googler (1,162,592) News and updates from Google
• Whole Foods Market (1,027,398): Fresh organic tweets from Whole Foods Market HQ in Austin, TX.
• woot.com (967,925): Woot : One Day, One Deal. Also see our other feeds: twitter.com/wootoff twitter.com/wootshirt twitter.com/wootwine twitter.com/wootsellout
• JetBlue Airways (895,996): Have a question? Follow us and let us help! – Currently on duty: Morgan Gigi, Lindsey, and Laurie
• World Economic Forum (892,071): Official Twitter account of the World Economic Forum, known for the Annual Meeting in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland (@Luefkens tweeting)
• Dell Outlet (873,245): Refurbished Dell™ computers, electronics. Question/comment? Contact Stefanie Nelson at @StefanieAtDell. More Dell Twitter accounts at www.Dell.com/Twitter
• Threadless (838,159): We’re a tee company where artists worldwide submit tee designs to us for a chance at $25,000+! Anyone can submit, score, share and buy their favorite new tees!
• Amazon MP3 (767,208): Daily Deals and special sales on DRM-free, play-anywhere music downloads from Amazon. The official Amazon MP3 twitter feed.
• CBOE (650,984): Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) is the largest U.S. options exchange and the creator of listed options.
• CMEGroup (642429): A CME/CBOT/NYMEX Company
• charity: water charity: water is a non-profit organization bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. www.charitywater.org
• iTunes Trailers (606,488): Official movie trailers and theatrical content updates to Apple iTunes Trailers, Apple TV, and for the iPhone/iPod touch on Twitter.
• CDC Emergency (549,746): CDC Emergency Preparedness and Response: increasing the nation’s ability to prepare for and respond to public health emergencies.
• Etsy! (521,558): The world’s most vibrant handmade marketplace. Reading your tweets: Anda https://anda.etsy.com
• UNHCR Official tweet (467,000): The official tweet of UNHCR. Follow us as we provide vital aid and protection to the forcibly displaced around the world.
• ROC4LIFE (457,681): Rocawear’s Online Community Site. Get all the latest News, Fashion and Culture highlights you love. Bookmark us today.
• Southwest Airlines (298,068) The LUV Airline! Airplanes can’t type so @Christi5321 is responding/chatting with you!
• joinred (207,576): Bringing people and brands together to help fight AIDS in Africa. Join us! Follow (RED).

Media & Reporters

The biggest category on the list, which makes sense as many of these put out information that would be safe for people of all sensitivities. Twitter REALLY likes the New York Times, listing it and several of its reporters. The only other papers getting a nod are single listings for the Guardian and the Chicago Tribune. NBC News also gets no love, while CBS News and ABC News get listed. CNN makes it; Fox News doesn’t. The list by followers:

• CNN Breaking News (2,266,921): CNN.com is among the world’s leaders in online news and information delivery.
• The New York Times (1,385,145): Where the Conversation Begins. Home page stories from NYTimes.com, special features and more.
• The Onion (1,259,223): America’s Finest News Source
• NPR Politics (1,104,408): Political coverage and conversation from NPR News
• Pete Cashmore The hottest Twitter news, Twitter tips and Twitter help. Plus, the best social media links around!
• TIME.com (1,067,318): Breaking news and current events from around the globe.
• E! Online (1,043,571): The official E! Online Twitter. Hot celebrity gossip and entertainment news. Check our following list for all the E!-family Twitters. For more: eonline.com
• Kevin Rose (1,013,999): Founder of social media site digg.com. Random ideas, entrepreneur, climber of rocks, video blogger, & tea drinker.
• BBC Click (1,001,227):The BBC’s flagship technology TV show. Click is on BBC1 Sat 06.45 & News Channel Sat 11.30 in the UK. International times are at bbcworldnews.com/click
• GeorgeStephanopoulos (963,834): ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent and Host of This Week
• Good Morning America (956,830): The Official Good Morning America Twitter Page
• Michael Arrington (937,907) Breaking Technology News And Opinions From TechCrunch
• Rachel Maddow MSNBC (908,941) I see political people…
• People magazine (908,120): PEOPLE.com is the No. 1 site for celebrity news!
• David Gregory (894,655): Host of NBC’s Meet the Press
• Guardian Tech (887,777): News and comment from the Guardian’s technology team
• The Moment (884,790): Where Style Meets Culture [NY Times pub]
• Women’s Wear Daily (864,443): The Official Women’s Wear Daily Twitter
• Nightline (838.464): ABC News, Nightline: LEGAL NOTICE: If you send us a tweet, you consent to letting ABC use and showcase it in any media, possibly even on television.
• BNO News (824,390): Live breaking news and developing stories non-stop from America and every corner of the World. Since 2007, the fastest Twitter-based news service.
• Larry King (771,743): Host – CNN’s Larry King Live
• Terry Moran (771,495): Nightline co-anchor
• Pitchfork (768,468): The essential guide to independent music and beyond
• CBS News (760,724): News alerts from CBS News.
• John Donvan (739,954): ABC News Correspondent
• Gary Vaynerchuk (718,644): Wine guy, host of Wine Library TV. Video blogger and Businessman that loves people and the hustle
• Scott Simon (713,804): Host of NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday
• John Dickerson (821,562): Political correspondent, Slate/Analyst CBS News
• SiliconAlleyInsider (711,525): Digital business news, live from New York
• InStyle.com (695,252): InStyle.com is the #1 destination for the latest celebrity styles and click-to-buy shopping
• David Pogue (670,761): Tech columnist, NY Times; CNBC tech dude; Missing Manuals creator, dad of 3!
• richard bacon (670,067): minor celebrity BBC Radio Fivelive presenter
• Om Malik (599,637): Founder of GigaOM. Venture Partner at True Ventures
• EWPopWatch (589,290): From Entertainment Weekly
• Digg 2000 (559,457): All stories on Digg that get 2,000 or more Diggs.
• Questo of The Roots (535,741): your favorite twitterer’s favorite music snob.
• LIFE.com (525,774): LIFE.com – the most comprehensive and iconic collection of professional photography on the web.
• Fantástico (504,080): Este é o twitter oficial do Fantástico, da TV Globo. Aqui você vai ficar por dentro dos bastidores e novidades do programa e do site
• Health magazine (492,909): Hi, we’re: @amaconamac @feedthebelly @healthylady @kstinchfield @lmalick @mgokay @rayhainer @seankelley @shaunchavis @ttamkins @wealer from Health magazine.
• soraya darabi (487,365) hello, strangers. i manage partnership and social-media marketing for the new york times (@nytimes). say hi.
• Dr. Sanjay Gupta (441,850): CNN Chief Medical Correspondent; Neurosurgeon
• Joel Stein (437,943): am neither important enough nor unimportant enough to do this.
• Michael Ausiello (432,627): Exclusive TV news and scoop from Entertainment Weekly
• Jack Gray (400,507): Producer/Writer for Anderson Cooper 360
• Newsweek (386,237): Newsweek magazine’s daily news, blogs, photo galleries, audio and video reports from correspondents; podcasts, mobile content and archives
• Richard MacManus (363,550) Follow ReadWriteWeb for the latest in web technology and social media trends.
• Chris Cuomo (313,878): Good Morning America News Anchor, Car guy, Fishing Guy, Cooking guy, Married, two angels
• Ann Curry (285,620): Journalism is an act of faith in the future.
• Nicholas Kristof (262,797): New York Times columnist, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner
• ColonelTribune (233,902): The Colonel knows Chicago. He is also a more gentlemanly version of @ChicagoTribune
• ABCNews.com (231,345): The Official Twitter Page of ABC NEWS — Online News, Breaking News, Feature Stories and More
• mystyle Quick Tip (23,610): Fashion, beauty and home secrets from mystyle.com editors, experts and readers

Musicians

At 17%, musicians make up the third biggest category on the list. Sister Hazel is at the bottom of the list but is also a relatively new addition. In order of followers:

• Britney Spears (2,437,455): Yes! This is the real Britney Spears! We’ve got updates from her team, her website and yes, even Britney herself!
• John Mayer (1,729,806): Recording/Sandwich Artist
• iamdiddy (1,513,928): KING COMBS
• Coldplay (1,378,122): The official Coldplay twitter page.
• 50cent (1,187,411): The Real 50 Cent
• Ashley Tisdale (1,116,708): The Official Ashley Tisdale Twitter Page. New album GUILTY PLEASURE coming 7/28!!!
• Dre’ (1,106,306): Actor, Rapper, Producer, Gamer, & C.E.O. Of SODMG
• Ashlee Simpson Wentz (1,095,381):this is the only official ashlee simpson twitter. “click your heels three times and think of me”
• Sara Bareilles (1,078,719)
• Hammer (1,075,891): https://mchammer.com
• Mariah Carey (1,013,769)
• Alison (973,079): hi there, i’m ali. i’m in a band called a fine frenzy. life is funny. let’s have a laugh.
• lilyroseallen (953,385) I can babble a little
• Jessica Simpson (913,486): The Official Jessica Simpson Twitter
• Mandy Moore (907,303) Singer-Songwriter-Artist-Actress and moore!
• Mark Hoppus (871,150): The Official Mark Hoppus Twitter Page, for what it’s worth… Be warned, I tweet a LOT.
• Fred Durst (846,148): Member of Limp Bizkit
• Al Yankovic (837485): You know… the Eat It guy.
• Jimmy Eat World (819,947): A rock band from Arizona
• John Legend (796,491): The Real John Legend
• Jim Jones (746,627): Rapper; CALL ME: 1 (917) 675-3685
• samantha ronson (740,847): Don’t be mad, UPS is hiring.
• Lenny Kravitz (740,837) I am giving away two spots on my guest list for each show on my European tour. Starts 4/17 through the Summer. Let Love Rule!
• Zoe Keating (734,024): Cello, computers and pancakes. The daily twitterings of a professional avant cellist and amateur nerd.
• Chris Cornell (722,527): The Official Chris Cornell Twitter
• danny masterson (713,180): born in NY.moved to LA at 16.got paid to model in ’81.got paid to act in ’82.stopped gettin paid to model in’91.got paid to DJ in ’97.got paid to remix in ’08.
• Imogen Heap (706,846): I’ve been tweeting about making my new album, Ellipse (out 24th Aug). Now… I guess I’ll be tweeting about how it gets from my studio to your ears…
• Nick Cannon (693,755): MR. CHAIRMAN
• colin meloy (642,370) singster/songstruner for the Decemberists, Orangina shill
• Noush Skaugen (579,033) Download an Exclusive song FREE www.NoushSkaugen.com – Singer, Songwriter, Actress, Idealistic Dreamer….Together we can change the world…<
• Pete Yorn (559,075): www.facebook.com/peteyorn for more stuff
• Kimberly Cole Music (545,719): Singer/Songwriter/Performer Kimberly Cole just opened for Katy Perry on NYE at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles and her new SUPERSTAR EP is out now!
• Matisyahu (540,849): Come to my RV on tour now – Free listening parties. https://wheresmatis.at
• Wyclef Jean (538,639): The Official Wyclef Twitter Page
• Hypnogaja (513,613): Alt. rock band with new concept album, Truth Decay – follow us on Twitter for updates on free music, shows and more.
• Counting Crows (ad) (455,877): Letters from Adam: My Boyhood Among the Outlaws
• moby (441,695): New album ‘Wait For Me’ out now!!
• Next To Normal (405,327): Next To Normal: 1st Broadway Show to Perform on Twitter
• Ernie Halter (356,924): Musician, Songwriter, Traveler, Lover, Humanitarian, Eater of Cheese, Redbull Enthusiast
• D.A. Wallach (300,437): Half of Star Trak’s Amazing Chester French Band!
• Travis McCoy (293,899) It’s an honor to be part of Staying Alive. If you learn 1 thing from following me- Be safe & take your LIFE seriously. Each one teach one, love & respect-Travie
• Jon Secada (112,881): Grammy-award winning singer/songwriter.
• Sister Hazel (76,144): Musicians, The Rock Boat co-founders, Lyrics For Life philanthropists, loyal friends and family men.

People

This is a potpourri of people who didn’t quite fit in other places. There are a number of authors among them — in the future, perhaps I’ll break that out as a category. The category makes up 11% of the list. By follower count:

1. Brooke Burke (992,098): Co-CEO of Modern Mom, celebrity mother of four. Read my daily blog https://modernmom.com – real, soulful, honest.  Founder of BabooshBaby.com
2. Zappos.com CEO -Tony (980,455): www.zappos.com blogs.zappos.com twitter.zappos.com
3. Felicia Day (960,959): Actress, New Media Geek, Gamer, Misanthrope. I like to keep my Tweets real and not waste people’s time.
4. Heather B. Armstrong (918,569): Mommyblogger, tyrant, snugglebunny
5. Veronica Belmont (908,684): Host of Tekzilla on Revision3 and Qore on PSN. Also, a geek.
6. Steven Johnson (869,456): Writer. (Six books, most recently Invention of Air.) Web site creator (3 companies, most recently outside.in.) Dad (three boys.)
7. Brandon Mendelson (846,782): Empowering the world to help others through social publishing. Will be traveling across America to help the homeless.
8. Ana Marie Cox (843,379):  There is no such thing as adventure. There’s no such thing as romance. There’s only trouble and desire.
9. Ryan Penagos (830,498): Marvel.com writer/editor/blogger
10. adventuregirl (806,051): Hi Everyone! Travel Expert- Adventure Girl at your service!
11. Tim O’Reilly (786,703): Founder and CEO, O’Reilly Media. Watching the alpha geeks, sharing their stories, helping the future unfold.
12. Neil Gaiman (774,670) will eventually grow up and get a real job. Until then, will keep making things up and writing them down.
13. soleil moon frye (769,191)
14. Padmasree (751,592): CTO of Cisco
15. David Allen (747,648): Originator of GTD, founder of David Allen Co.
16. Jason Sweeney (552,078): limited edition, macaroni and glitter on construction paper.
17. dick costolo (504,141): [cofounder, FeedBurner]
18. Chris Anderson (494,046): TED = Ideas worth spreading!
19. Joe Trippi (478,618): Fmr Dean Campaign Mgr. Author of The Revolution Will Not Be Televised Tweets important causes. Internet and Democracy. Social media and business.
20. Jack Welch (477,527): Author and Commentator
21. John Green (464,575): I write books and make videos with my brother.
22. MC Thumbtack (459,435): writing. photography. hockey. punk rock. QOTSA. sushi, New followers read this:https://bit.ly/18MTPr
23. Sarah Brown (401,433): signing up a million mums and guest editing Fabulous magazine as Patron of Wellbeing of Women charity
24. Roger Erik Tinch (382,815): Art/Online Director for the CineVegas Film Festival, film fanatic, tech head, web geek, design nerd, art lover and music snob living in Vegas.
25. Doug Ulman (329,236): Cancer survivor, Pres/CEO of LAF, runner, golfer, traveler, social activist, optimist, avid reader, and fearful flyer.
26. Kai-Fu Lee (115,178): I am the President of Google Greater China. I used to work at Microsoft, SGI, and Apple. I have written several Chinese books.

Politics

Twitter likes mayors! Who would have known? There are a couple on the list. And Britain’s Downing Street beats the US White House. The list by followers:

• Al Gore (1,264,116)
• John McCain (1,022,338): U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ)
• DowningStreet (980,680): The official twitter channel for the Prime Minister’s Office based at 10 Downing Street.
• Gavin Newsom (755,758): Mayor of San Francisco, Candidate for Governor of California
• The White House (705,092): Welcome to the official Twitter page of the White House.
• Newt Gingrich (670,547): Former House Speaker, author,Fox analyst,founder HealthTransformation.net, @AmSol. With enough time I’d be a paleontologist,chef,zoo director and movie reviewer
• Gov. Schwarzenegger (670,043): As California’s 38th Governor I look forward to hearing from you.
• Mufi Hannemann (532,258): Mayor: City and County of Honolulu (Official Account)
• Jerry Brown (514,111) I’m the current Attorney General for California, former mayor of Oakland and a former governor of California.
• Rania Al Abdullah (446,139) A mum and a wife with a really cool day job… [& Queen Of Jordan]
• Cory Booker (396,344): Mayor of Newark, New Jersey
• Kevin Rudd (191,938): PM [of Australia]

Twitter Employees & Associates

People follow the official Twitter account more than any other in this category. Here’s the list, in order of most followers to least:

• Twitter (1,796,771) Always wondering what everyone’s doing.
• Evan Williams (1,096,879): CEO of Twitter
• Biz Stone (934,439) Co-founder of Twitter, Inc.
• Jack Dorsey (897,603): Creator, Chairman and co-founder of Twitter
• Chris Sacca (815,650) I advise Twitter. I use Twitter. I love Twitter, and a couple other things.
• Jason Goldman (811,352): Flipped my wig at age 22 and it never grew back. Also: I work at Twitter.

Web Sites

Cats saying funny things — Has Cheezburger — leads the list. Here’s everyone in order of followers:

• Has Cheezburger? (949,616): This is the official ICHC TwitFeed. Check out @icanhaschzbgr for moar conversation.
• someecards (911,127): Welcome to the Twitter feed of acclaimed humor site, someecards.com!
• twt.fm (881,522): Share music on Twitter
• Ustream (827,080): Official Tweets about the best live streams, updates and news from Ustream. If you need help, message @ustreamsupport
• trazzler.com (738,609) Tweeting our favorite spots on earth so you can dream about your next trip. Personalize your trip stream on trazzler.com. (Megan & Adam do the tweeting here.)
• You Look Great (689,652) Your daily passive-aggressive affirmation.
• cakewrecks (610,813) Jen from Cake Wrecks here, at your service
• ExecTweets (515,905):Here to help you find and follow the top business executives on Twitter. Presented by Microsoft.
• Funny or Die (505,283): We like to laugh.
• BestAt: The Best @’s (417,762): Automagically retweeting the funny tweets since 2008. A ‘Best of Twitter’ featuring the best @’s. An @JoeLaz production.
• G4TV (348,933) The Official G4tv Twitter. Video Game videos, reviews and news. Check our following list for all the G4-family Twitters. For more: g4tv.com

Still Need More?

If the suggested users list people aren’t enough, well — you could always add me: dannysullivan. Or Search Engine Land: sengineland. Also see our The Big List Of Search Engines & Their Employees On Twitter post.