Politicians, journalists and academics say they are discovering new audiences by using social networking sites such as Twitter.

The site allows people to "talk" by sending messages over the internet which others can see.

A conference at the University of Leicester today was investigating how people could get the most out of this form of communication.

Councillor Ross Grant, leader of the Conservative group at Leicester City Council, is an active "tweeter", as Twitter users are known.

He said: "I'm having discussions with people who would not have contacted me in the traditional ways.

"Obviously, we have to carry on with traditional surgeries but we've got to do everything we can to communicate with people who don't come to them.

"Politicians worried about social networking are those who want to control things. This is far more transparent.

"People can disagree with us straight away."

Councillor Sarah Russell, a Labour member, also uses Twitter, but is more sceptical.

She said: "It has its place. For instance, I've had discussions with councillors in Barnsley about an idea for youth travel.

"Soon we might start putting our Twitter address on leaflets but at the moment most people who talk to me come up to me in the street."

Leicester Mercury editor Keith Perch uses Twitter to talk about issues.

Councillor Grant and Mr Perch were talking at a "paper-free" seminar today on the impact of social media, organised by doctoral students from the university's media and communication department

Meanwhile, research at the University of Leicester has warned of "cliques" developing in e-mail groups.

David Freke said: "An organisation that claims to respect and include every individual can, through its e-mail cliques, appear to be more concerned with excluding anyone who is perceived to be a threat, or appears to be different.

"Anyone who is concerned with organisational values and culture should be concerned about the groups that form within their organisation's internal cyberspace."