A regional daily is staging a mass ‘Tweet’ by its readers today in a bid to create a snapshot of life on its patch.

The Argus is asking all those who follow its Twitter feed to use the social networking site to record a day in the life of 21st century Brighton.

The move is a modern take on the aims of the famous Mass Observation archive, which is housed at the University of Sussex and was launched 73 years ago to the day.

The Tweets will be used to build up a snapshot of the city, which will be published in the newspaper.

Arts reporter Nione Meakin said: ” The Mass Observation archive is a valuable resource that since the 1970s has been housed at the University of Sussex. It gives a real insight into the way people lived, what they thought, what they wore – even what they ate for their breakfasts.

“I liked the idea of exploring a modern equivilent and Twitter seemed the obvious choice.Every day, people are recording their thoughts publically and it offers an instant way to gauge the public mood.

“We want Argus readers to tell us about any element of their day, be it a walk in Preston Park or a description of a new pair of shoes they’ve just bought.

“Something of national note may inform the Tweets, or the experiment may yield very personal, domestic entries – either way, we hope it will put a fun, contemporary twist on the way history is recorded.”