First Tweeter (And St. Louis Native) Jack Dorsey Checks in From Ferguson

While it might have the feel of a stunt, there is no question that Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey is deeply genuine in his burst of posts from Ferguson, Missouri, today.

Dorsey, who sent the first tweet ever, played reporter from the troubled suburb of St. Louis, the Midwestern city where he also hails from, sending out a series of tweets and Vine videos from the scene.

That included marching with Alderman Antonio French earlier today, after a night of increased tension in Ferguson in the wake of the police shooting of an unarmed black youth:

https://twitter.com/jack/status/500808995721187328

and then joining in the march tonight:

https://twitter.com/jack/status/500835845709258752

and using a famous phrase related to protests:

https://twitter.com/jack/status/500816746581078016

The social media coming out of Ferguson has been massive, very much like every other major news event these days and especially on Twitter. The raw photos and videos, largely done by those with no media training, give perhaps the best sense of what is actually happening there.

So far, Dorsey’s understated and heartfelt posts have been well received across the medium, with tweets of support like this:

https://twitter.com/BigBoi/status/500816543308345344

It’s a decidedly welcome use of Twitter, which was slammed earlier this week when the daughter of the late Robin Williams left the service after being targeted by a series of appalling posts concerning her father’s tragic suicide.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.