Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Twitter footprint improved in 2012, but it still lags behind other leaders in the region. According to a report released last month by the Digital Policy Council (DPC) that ranked all 123 heads of state with Twitter accounts, Netanyahu jumped three places, from #31 to #28.

The reaction so far to newly proposed State Department guidelines for staff members tweeting in their official capacity about certain subjects has been universally negative. Under the proposed guidelines, obtained by the Diplopundit blog, there could be up to a two-day review ahead of publishing posts on social media sites.

Hundreds of Chinese netizens posted comments marvelling that the Canadian envoy at the time – David Mulroney – was driving a relatively inexpensive car compared to the luxury vehicles favoured by their own officials. In just one click, Ottawa had managed to engage a wide audience in a debate about corruption and transparency, using one of China’s hugely popular social networks.