The year's most significant event in blogging, or perhaps on the Internet in general, was arguably the blogs that focused the world on the massacre in Myanmar.
The depictions and descriptions of Burmese troops killing monks to quell pro-democracy rallies didn't generate the Web traffic of, say, the mascara-eyed boy crying crocodile tears for Britney Spears or the spicy "Obama Girl" video. But they offered a glimpse into a future where totalitarian regimes will be confronted by the power of people to transmit words, and more importantly images, to broadcast their plight around the globe. Just as Sept. 11 was altered profoundly by the rise of the cell phone - if calls hadn't gone through to United Flight 93, perhaps we'd be rebuilding the U.S. Capitol - blogs will someday thwart a brutal regime.
Here are the rest of my 10:
2. WILDFIRES --The ability of government and news organizations, victims and eyewitnesses to transmit news instantly about the Southern California fires showed the breadth of new media even when events are scattered across hundreds of miles and are changing with the wind.
3. HOKIE NATION --In a way perhaps not seen in the U.S. since Sept. 11, the Internet provided a medium for people to learn the whereabouts of loved ones and acquaintances on the day of the Virginia Tech shootings.
4. POLITICS --Blogs are gaining influence - or at least the candidates are reacting to the inside-baseball discussions on them about their campaigns. YouTube co-hosted two debates. The first one for Democrats was inauspiciously remembered for a talking snowman, while the second one for Republicans became the most-watched in cable history. The most-talked-about political videos this year were just plain humorous: the masterful remake of the 1984 Apple Computer ad that inserted Hillary Clinton as the feared Orwellian symbol and Senator Clinton's own quick and clever remake of the Sopranos finale. Political blogs like the Daily Kos, Michelle Malkin and the Huffington Post are adding a new wing to the Fourth Estate.
5. HARRY AND THE DEATHLY SECRET --The most anticipated moment of the year may have been midnight July 21, when J.K. Rowling released the final book in her phenomenally popular Harry Potter series. Keeping the fate of the beloved boy wizard under wraps until days before the release - yes, The Sun got an early copy and was a leaker - was a magical feat in itself, since pop-culture information of great desirability rarely eludes the Web's maw.
