United Airline’s struggle to understand how social media works

Above downtown Chicago, on the 28th floor of Willis Tower, United Airlines employees stare at double-paneled computer monitors and communicate with the world without speaking. Members of the social media team at United are sometimes dealing one-on-one with a customer on Facebook or Twitter about a missed flight connection, or blasting out messages to hundreds of thousands about the airline's newest airfare promotion. On a recent day, they answered questions from a young woman in New York who describes herself on Twitter as a "gold medalist in sarcasm." She was worried her flight would be delayed because of weather. They also helped a mother wanting to know if her toddler needed a separate plane ticket. On Facebook, they answered a question about the rules for flying with pets. On Twitter, they posted a snapshot of an aircraft engine to intrigue aviation geeks. Chicago-based United Airlines, the world's largest carrier, is not a leader in using social media, at least yet. It