I thought I would piggy-back on Sterling’s post yesterday regarding the fact that many corporations don’t always hear what’s going on in the metasphere, even though there are many things that are being said.

Prior to the new media, technology for media distribution was inaccessible to the everyman; however, new media technology has radically transformed the way that information is created and distributed.

People are now turning to their friends, whom they naturally trust, and people whom their friends trust as sources of news and information. These groups of people form communities and, through new media technology such as blogs, podcasts, cross-linking, and comment options, engage in conversation with one another. These communities then produce and discuss the stories which they feel are most relevant.

So, what’s the biggest change? I feel that it is the presence of multiple voices, the impact of the technology which gives a voice to the everyman. For example, if an individual wants to learn more about a certain company’s performance on the market, they do not have to rely solely on the Wall Street Journal or Forbes, they can turn to the plurality of voices around them and discover for themselves the relevant, unfiltered information they desire about a company.

People are talking, are you listening?

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