1. Michael Jackson’s death, funeral and the Internet coverage of it all
2. How web-like the Web truly is
3. Newspapers and digital communication

Michael Jackson

Pete notes that Internet traffic increased 33 percent on July 7, the day of Jackson’s televised funeral. Both Mark and Pete were struck by how much people relied on the Internet and social media to not only find information about the singer’s demise, but also to share thoughts and lend support to a grieving family.

If this teaches us one thing, it’s that social media now plays a vital role in not only information sharing but connecting all of humanity.

Remember Princess Diana’s death? Michael Jackson’s was also a worldwide story, only his was discussed extensively — and still is — on digital social networks.

The Internet is Truly Like a Web

In this discussion Pete and Mark talk about how companies and organizations should strive to publish content online, which is the center of their web, or the hub of a wheel, and make it easy for others to then take pieces of that content and share them out on the web or at a distance from the central hub of the wheel.

It’s all about engaging, creative content that others will pick-up and share with their networks. The more a company can think like a publisher and take advantage of social networks to help share their message, the more online market share they’ll receive.

Newspapers and Digital Communication

Mark and Pete talk about how print-based publications will have to increasingly utilize digital means to share their content.

The notion that newspapers can keep back a portion of their content from online readers was debated. Pete expressed his belief that newspapers will only find success as they create digital content that’s equal to and even greater than printed content — with higher word count and video included.

David Pogue of the New York Times is a good example of this.

Resources

Newspaper Death Watch

David Pogue