I am a Twitter ambassador, roaming the earth to cheerfully explain to non-believers that Twitter does have merit, that it can be an asset to a business' marketing, and that it is about much, much more than sharing what I had for breakfast.

Then I learned about Penelope Trunk.

The story goes that Ms. Trunk was in a board meeting last month and sent the following tweet:
I'm in a board meeting. Having a miscarriage. Thank goodness, because there's a f----- -up 3-week hoop-jump to have an abortion in Wisconsin.
Yeppers. TMI (too much information) in all its glory. Lost in the stunning lack of modesty and dare I say, self-respect, is a valid lament about how doctors who perform abortions are scarce in many parts of the country. Also valid is her resentment of the bureaucratic red tape designed to help avert the process all together.

This is no blushing teen. Ms. Trunk is 42 years old. ABC News said she's made a career coaching people how to build and maintain a professional online identity. And yet, she chose to share her miscarriage with the world. She followed up her tweet with several posts at her blog Brazen Careerist.

It wasn't until I saw Ms. Trunk on CNN that my gaping mouth began to close and I questioned what I really felt about this story.

In keeping with her persona of a workplace adviser, Ms. Trunk says that in times of personal emergency or crisis, it's best to be honest with your employer about the situation. Further, she argues, because miscarriage is not uncommon at work, and because it is a multi-week process and not a one-action event, she is modeling the at-work behavior she promotes. (25% of pregnancies end in miscarriage, and 75% of all women of childbearing age work)

And it's not that Ms. Trunk doesn't understand that for many women a miscarriage is a sad, terrible thing. But for her, right now? Nope.

What I thought was an "oversharing on Twitter" story has blossomed into a pro-choice/anti-abortion story. Conservative writers like Kathleen Parker are fanning the flames, indignant that one would celebrate the death of a fetus, even amidst planning for an abortion.

A reminder: at least twice this year we've also seen what you could call the "anti-Trunk tweet": women using Twitter while giving birth. Upon hearing that news, reactions seemed to be more muted than with the miscarriage. More like, well, if that's how you really want to spend that time, OK.

Where's the line? Is poor taste like pornography -- something you'll know when you see it? 'Cause right now, we're seeing everything.


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