Rupert Murdoch Sets Twitter A-Twitter

News Corp. chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch kicked off the new year in a surprise move, for an executive who has been suspicious of social media in the past — he has joined Twitter, where he's been tweeting as @rupertmurdoch since Dec 31st. 

Confirmed by a News Corp. spokesperson and already spoofed by Taiwan's faux news service, NMA TV, so far Murdoch is following four accounts (Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, Google co-founder Larry Page, Amshold Group chairman Alan Sugar and Zynga CEO Mark Pincus) and has weighed in on such matters as the new Steve Jobs bio, promoted his Wall Street Journal team (for an op-ed on Ron Paul) and FOX Studio (for releasing We Bought a Zoo), and praised Michael Bloomberg as "the best mayor" in New York City history. The Guardian posted Twitter tips for Murdoch, including not being so self-promotional.

Update: The Guardian also reports that Murdoch's wife, and self-appointed Twitter czar, Wendi Deng is also on Twitter, where she's been flirting with Ricky Gervais and defending her husband. Update2: It's not Wendi, even though Twitter verified the account.