Interesting Articles: Q1 2011

Culture and Media:
* The Formula for a Most-Emailed Story (WNYC's On The Media via NPR). Reports on a study that examined what features make some articles more shared than others. The main factors include the obvious (prominent placement, famous author, usefulness) but also the less obvious (inducing high-arousal emotions, especially awe and anger; also, surprisingness). This pattern holds for every subject area (science, finance, politics, etc.). One caveat, however, that many commenters pointed out: this only measured people using the "e-mail this story" link, not using other ways of sharing articles; this may be an unrepresentative sample of how most people share articles. This story was also reported in the New York Times itself: Will You Be E-Mailing This Column? It’s Awesome.

Politics and Psychology:
* Does Metaphorical Framing Really Work? (WNYC's On The Media via NPR). In short, the answer is yes, that how politicians frame a problem influences how people interpret evidence and think about possible solutions. And the effect is surprisingly strong. And people don't know the metaphor has influenced them. There's also some interesting commentary on the failure of the French label (freedom fries, etc.) in this segment.

Culture and Technology:
* Don’t Call Me, I Won’t Call You (New York Times). A true observation on modern life.