For a recently out-of-work and even more recent ex-pat, getting a job offer to manage a company’s Twitter account for $100,000 sure seems like a good deal.
But will NSA whistleblower and newly-landed Russian resident Edward Snowden take the gig? A publicity-starved company called MeetAtTheAirport recently offered Snowden a cushy role as a company spokesperson, whose primary job requirement would be to tweet from the company Twitter account, which is fairly dismal right now. They’ve only tweeted 21 times, and the last tweet is from December 2012, so clearly the company needs someone to take their social media game up several notches.
The man does have taxes to pay, after all.
It seems like a reasonable financial choice to take the job – but why is MeetAtTheAirport offering him the role in the first place?
Well, Snowden did have a very high-profile stay at the Moscow Airport, and MeetAtTheAirport’s whole deal is helping people who are delayed or otherwise stuck in transit at airports by hooking them up with fellow stranded travelers, facilitating a more pleasant experience through socialization. Maybe they figure Snowden would understand the value of their service, since he may have been lonely as he struggled to find refuge.
Although MeetAtTheAirport doesn’t come right out and say it, from the promotional material and the service’s subtext, it looks like a hookup app for people who are bored at airports. “Find fellow travelers that are looking for that added sense of excitement that you only get when meeting someone new. Share a drink with an attractive stranger in the totally safe environment of a public airport. Perhaps, share a brunch or romantic dinner while waiting for your flight and explore the enticing possibilities that are presented to you. Romance, friendship, travel companion, networking… The possibilities are endless.”
Right, and the “Casual Encounters” section on Craigslist is also used for platonic friendship matches. This is a primarily a hookup site – when you sign up, you have to fill out what is essentially a dating profile, and you have to specify your sexuality (if you’re straight, it only lets you choose to meet members of the opposite sex).
With all the hullabaloo surrounding Snowden’s girlfriend, I’m a little surprised MeetAtTheAirport wants a guy in a relationship (or who just swiftly vacated one?) as its spokesperson, but I suppose there aren’t that many single internationally famous human talking points who’ve spent prolonged periods of time in airports to choose from.
The small beans hookup service probably only wants Snowden as their spokesperson to drum up publicity, but here’s hoping he takes the job and uses the account to go full Weird Twitter. I’m guessing this may have just been a stunt and they don’t have the money to pay him that much, considering it looks like a time traveling web designer from 1998 created their website for barter.
MeetAtTheAirport isn’t the only place looking to put Snowden into a social media job. One of the founders of VKontakte, Russia’s version of Facebook, wrote that he would be happy to see Snowden become a programmer for the service. Even though they haven’t formally extended an offer, VKontakte is probably a more legitimate option.
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