A WEEK ago today, President Obama held the first, and possibly the last, “Twitter Town Hall Meeting.’’ Depending on your perspective, it was either a sign that the president is down with the times, or the latest in a line of gimmicks meant to prove that politicians are down with the times. (I remember a presidential debate years ago, co-hosted by MTV, where half of the candidates wore turtlenecks to look hip.)

As viewed on TV, it was a sober and sedate affair, in which the president gave long, spoken-word answers to short, respectful questions.

But everything looked much less sober online: Obama’s much-touted town hall was a playground for party crashers. And in a way, that’s the most heartening news of all.

Read the rest of the column from the Boston Globe here.