Digg turns five, but hasn’t twitter superseded it already?
Digg was once a huge part of the Web, being at the forefront of the Web 2.0 revolution which promised (and pretty much succeeded) turning the Web from a Wild West with no direction to an organized, friendlier, and more useful place. But as Digg celebrates turning five years old isn’t it facing death at the hands of the likes of Twitter and Facebook?
I’ve used Digg extensively in the past, and written about the social media site quite a bit here on Blorge. However, 2009 has seen my attention turned from Digg to some of the younger pretenders. It’s not that Digg has suddenly taken a turn for the worse or anything – it’s still the site it’s always been – but there are now better alternatives out there.
Digg The Blog has celebrated the ticking over of the site’s five years on the Web with a self-congratulatory slap on the back. Kevin Rose is correct in applauding the rise from three staff to 80+ and the rise in visitor numbers to 40 million per month. And the fact that December 4 has now been declared Dogg.com day in San Francisco is testament to the influence the site has had on the Internet.
However, personally speaking I’ve found myself spending less and less time browsing Digg’s multiple pages as more real-time sources for breaking news have turned up. Social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace have allowed people to share links, pictures, and videos with their friends on a massive scale, thus removing some of the usefulness of the Web 2.0 pioneers such as Digg.
And then there is Twitter, which even the most pessimistic onlookers would admit has been a boon for citizen journalists and the breaking of both local and global stories on the Web. So where does that leave Digg?
It may well still have a great many visitors and be capable of turning a profit but I feel the site needs to evolve and grow if it stands any chance of competing in the long term with some of its new competitors. Innovations such as the brilliant Digg Dialogg and the newly rolled out Digg 365 have got to be where it’s at for Digg or it risks being superseded and condemned to death by a rapidly-changing Web.
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December 5th, 2009
Yup, I agree. Digg was for the early adopter inner circle and was exclusive– ie excluded the masses.
But… getting Digged still is a kick!