News Junkies Find Relief

We know what we would like people to read, and what we think people are reading, but what are they really reading and sharing as news? The obits in print newspapers have often been touted as the most popular section (all those fascinating life stories) but on the Internet where is the real buzz? 

Yahoo! lists the most emailed news and photos here (you can also search by date); the Google Zeitgeist gives you highly searchable access to search patterns, trends, and surprises.

Why does this matter? A pitch increases in relevance and is more likely to be picked up if it is tied to popular news. These days that can be determined more by web traffic than an editor’s singular judgement.