Do the seemingly limitless interaction opportunities provided by social networks like Facebook make us lonelier? It seems contradictory at first, but as Facebook has grown to over 800,000,000 active monthly users, it’s a question that has certainly been floated more than once. The Atlantic has just published an in-depth report on the subject that starts with explaining how loneliness has become an epidemic, with more Americans than ever living alone (27 percent) and a staggering 25 percent of Americans in 2010 saying they have no one to confide in — an increase from 10 percent in 1985.

via Facebook: a tool for interaction that breeds loneliness? | The Verge.

Deleting your social media account may be the most difficult breakup you’ll ever have. Networks try various techniques to get you to stay, and they often leave you wondering if it’s you and not them. Let’s take a look at some of these clever little tricks that make it hard to delete your social profiles.

via Social Media Guilt Trip: 10 Ways Networks Try to Make You Stay.

Keynote: Invest in Scalable Social Business Programs.

A cool keynote by Jeremiah Owyang.

journalists can learn from social networks, and not just pop culture or breaking news, but also broader lessons about how to do their job. So knowing that all good things have an expiration date, at least on the Internet, here’s what journalists should realize and remember as they tiptoe through social networking topics.

via Lessons for journalists from the demise of Friendster – 10,000 Words.

Social Media Applications are transforming the way people communication. Whether you are already using social media for business or just starting out these Do’s and Don’ts will serve you well in helping you build your Social Media Empire.

via The Steel Method | The Do’s and Don’ts of Using Social Media for Business.

The course of social media never did run smooth — not for long, anyhow. And for some Web 2.0 companies, it’s running less smoothly than ever.

It goes without saying that Facebook is the network du jour, but even though the reigning champion’s user stats keep soaring, social networking as a whole might be leveling off. Nevertheless, there are still scores of other highly competitive social sites that are waxing and waning; and different networks and apps are more popular in specific geographic areas, with certain genders or age groups and even among various social classes.

The Winners & Losers of Social Networking [INFOGRAPHIC].

Routinely Unfriend for Clutter-Free Social UpdatesRoutinely Unfriend for Clutter-Free Social UpdatesInformation overload can happen when you follow or friend too many people on your various social networks, making it necessary to clean house. Here are a few tips for keeping your social networks tidy and your updates clutter-free.

via Routinely Unfriend for Clutter-Free Social Updates.

Hyves is by far the no1 social network in the Netherlands, and has just been acquired by a traditionnal media company. Interesting to see the movement going on here 🙂

Hyves bought by the TMG editor – Datanews.be.