People Search Digest

USA Today is taking news to whole new level. They’re bringing it into the future and making it interactive. Recently, USA Today integrated Pluck’s new social media suite, which is a group of social networking products a number of other high profile sites have adopted. Overnight the popular site went from just news to something entirely different. If you are a regular USA Today reader, then this new social network is a great opportunity for you. If you aren’t, you might want to give it a shot. It works in that they allow their readers to register and have access to a whole new aspect of the site - at no cost. Have you ever been reading a news article and had a strong opinion, but had no medium (besides your dog or spouse) to voice it? Well, now USA Today allows you to comment on articles, and read other people’s comments.

You can even recommend articles to others, which is very similar to Digg. This new feature allows readers to become part of a nationwide conversation that includes everyone from expert journalists to political pundits to the average Joe. It also provides forums where members can openly discuss stories and topics of interest. Although all USA Today visitors are free to browse the forums, only members are permitted to join the conversation. In addition to finding and interacting with fellow news enthusiasts, this new membership allows you personalize your own news experience. Users are able to create their own profiles, upload photos, keep track of comments on articles, send messages to other users, and include a little info about their own personality.

With the Myspace and Facebook revolution, social networks have been shown to drive a lot of site traffic and increase page views, but so far data for USA Today hasn’t reaped these benefits in terms of unique visitors or page views. However, it is still a fairly new feature, and often it takes time for the word to spread. So, if you’re a closet politician or just someone who likes to stay current, check out USA Today’s social network, and find other people who share the same passion.