It’s almost meeting time! Starting tomorrow, historians from around the world will gather in Washington, DC, to share research, trade teaching techniques, and discuss wide-ranging developments in the discipline. As in previous years, @AHAhistorians will be very active on Twitter throughout the meeting. We will be sharing sessions of interest and announcements about events, as well as notices about exciting conversations that are happening. But we can’t do it alone! 

AHA’s social media editor has some useful Twitter guidelines for live-tweeters, presenters, and historians interested in what’s going on at AHA18. Mike Licht via Flickr/CC BY 2.0

At past meetings, attendees have used Twitter to discuss the meeting, tweet photos of the meeting city, and live-tweet sessions. Twitter connections can lead to in-person meetups at the meeting (such as this podcast meetup on Friday), and live tweeting can offer those unable to attend the meeting in person a chance to follow along and join conversations. If you’re going to be tweeting at the annual meeting or following #aha18, here are some things to keep in mind:

For Live-Tweeters

• As always, we will be using the hashtag #aha18 for all things meeting-related.
• Use session hashtags for live-tweeting from specific sessions. These should be listed as #s1, #s2, #s214, and so on. The numbers can be found in the session descriptions in the program and the AHA18 app. Please take the time to look these up. If you aren’t using the session hashtag, your tweets may not be seen by other session attendees or those following the session.
• Use topical hashtags where applicable. If you aren’t sure what hashtag is being used, do a little research in advance. (A good place to start is this AHA Today post from last year about preferred history hashtags among Twitterstorians.) Topical hashtags are one of the best ways to connect with historians with shared interests at the annual meeting. They also enable cross-session discussions to take place.
• Include the Twitter handles of speakers and poster presenters when tweeting about their work or presentations. This is courteous, a useful form of citation, and a great way to make new Twitter acquaintances. It can take a little time to find these, but the time spent doing some Twitter searches is worth it if you end up making a new connection.
• Respect the wishes of presenters who do not want their presentations tweeted.

For Presenters

• If you are giving a presentation, share it on Twitter with both #aha18 and the session tag, and consider including our custom participant Twitter graphic.
• If you are on a panel or roundtable and do not wish for your remarks to be tweeted, please make this clear at the beginning of your presentation.
• If you have a Twitter handle you wish others to use, share it at the beginning of your presentation. Including your handle on the first slide of your PowerPoint presentation or at the bottom of every slide can be very helpful to those tweeting and increases your chances of getting mentioned in those tweets.
• If you are giving a poster presentation, include your handle on your poster.

For Those Following from Afar

• Follow #aha18 for main meeting conversations.
• To follow specific sessions, search the session hashtags. This will be #s + the number specified in the program. For example, #s12, #s324, and so on.
• Follow @AHAhistorians! We’ll let you know when major events or sessions are coming up. We will also be sharing exciting conversations, photos, and the occasional video interviews with meeting attendees.

#aha18-specific hashtags

To facilitate discussions at events without session numbers at the annual meeting, we’ve established a few hashtags in advance.

• Use #aha18 and #thatcamp for THATCamp at George Washington University Foggy Bottom campus on Wednesday
• Use #aha18 and #GSDH for the Getting Started in Digital History workshop on Thursday
• Use #aha18 and #p1 for the first plenary: “New Perspectives on Histories of the Slave Trade”
• Use #aha18 and #p2 for the second plenary: “The State and Future of the Humanities in the United States”
• Use #aha18 and #CareerFair to tweet about the Career Fair
• Use #aha18 and #ahaposters to tweet about poster presentations
• Include #aha18 and #exhibithall in tweets about the Exhibit Hall

For late-breaking sessions:

• Contextualizing Catalonia: The History of Catalan Nationalism and the Spanish Constitution with Respect to the 1st of October – #aha18 #lb1
• Revolt against Regulation in the Time of Trump: Historical Perspectives – #aha18 #lb2
• A Fateful Misunderstanding: A Discussion of the Film Documentary The Vietnam War by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick – #aha18 #lb3
• Historians and Sexual Harassment: The Challenge for the AHA – #aha18 #lb4
• Immigration Control and Resistance: Historicizing the Present Moment, a Conversation between Historians and Activists – #aha18 #lb5
• The North Korean Nuclear Crisis in History – #aha18 #lb6

Contacting AHA Staff at the Meeting

Because the #aha18 stream and @AHAhistorians Twitter account will be so busy, we cannot guarantee a timely reply for attendees trying to get in touch that way. If you wish to contact AHA staff with a specific concern during the meeting, we recommend e-mailing the appropriate staff member, finding a staff member in an annual meeting t-shirt (they will be present in all hotels), or visiting Information at the Marriott’s Convention Registration Desk (Lobby Level). This will ensure that we will address your concern as quickly as possible.

This post first appeared on AHA Today.