If there is one thing that the recent Twitter scandal surrounding NY Rep. Anthony Weiner did it slowed the use of social media by politicians. If there was ever a silver lining in an otherwise pathetic situation this may have been it. PC World reports

The “Weinergate” scandal caused a significant drop in tweeting politicians. According to VentureBeat, after the scandal “the number of tweets by Republican members of Congress dropped by 27 percent, while those of Democrats dropped by 29 percent.”

Of course, the US is gearing up for yet another fun filled presidential election process that promises to be full of promises which in turn usually means its full of something else too but that’s beside the point. President Obama established his ‘mastery’ of the social media arts in the last campaign and possibly won the election with the base of voters he motivated through online channels.

The internet is full of lurkers, those curious folks who read but don’t join in. (You know who you are.) Social media has them by the ton and Foursquare is determined to involve them one way or the other.

Foursquare co-founder Dennis Crowley spoke at a conference this week where he talked about ways of bringing additional value to Foursquare users. Twitter has a large lurker rate, but many people who don’t Tweet actively use the service to follow friends, celebs and hashtags. But as BetaBeat points out, following people on Foursquare without actually participating is, well. . . tantamount to stalking.

The solution, says Crowley, is to introduce an explore feature and maybe even celebrity squares. With just a little tweaking, Foursquare can position itself as a city guide with top users suggesting the best places to eat, shop and visit.