Social media is nothing new and Twitter is like a big cocktail party

Social media is nothing new is a neat little article by Steve McKee in Business Week.
He says :

"Social media has always been with us.Who hasn't recommended a product to a neighbor, received a tip from a colleague, or asked for a referral from a friend? From grocery store aisles to cocktail party asides, the "social media" we've commonly called word-of-mouth or relationship marketing have always been the most trusted form of outreach".

"Take Twitter, for example. It's really no different from a cocktail party (a huge cocktail party, to be sure) and the same rules of engagement apply."

For the full article click here.

Has Google Buzz changed the landscape?

On 9 Feb 2010 Google launched Google Buzz. Does this mean that as this article on Mashable says :
Google Buzz has completely changed the game : here's how ?
Why? Why has it grown so rapidly? Why has it riled up such strong emotions on both sides? Are the privacy issues going to permanently damage Google? And most of all, what does Google Buzz mean for Twitter, Facebook, and the rest of the social media world?
The Social Analyst is a weekly column by Mashable Co-Editor Ben Parr, where he digs into social media trends and how they are affecting companies in the space.