A really interesting presentation from Gilad Lotan, including his video from the Personal Democracy Forum 2012 in New York City. He outlined his key points:

1. My Network != Your Network: networks of followers, audiences differ substantially in time of day, activity, engagement and shape.
2. Overarching generalizations will most likely be misinforming.
3. We need to better understand networked dynamics such as information flows, audience intersections and the effect of algorithmic curation.
4. Networked spaces are NOT a pure meritocracy: certain positions are advantageous.

The US State Department looks at the role of social media in diplomacy. The US State Department has been increasing its use of social media for years now, not only in terms of using it in its public diplomacy efforts but also in terms of analysing social media to gauge public opinion, such as after Barack Obama's speech in Egypt.

This isn't about the US elections but UK politics, but it still has good tips on how to report opinion polls.

A look at the wealthy donors behind the super PACs in the 2012 campaigns including Sheldon Adelson, whose family has given at least $10m to a PAC backing Newt Gingrich, and wealthy hedge fund manager John Paulson who has given $1m to a PAC supporting Mitt Romney.

This will go back and forth for much of the rest of the year, but this poll from the Washington Post shows Obama pulling ahead slightly of Romney. What's interesting is that Obama holds an edge in terms of handling the economy and Romney the edge in terms of handling the deficit.

Kevin: Dan Balz of the Washington Post has an excellent piece looking at the anger in the Republican establishment against Newt Gingrich. Balz is one of the best political writers in the US and has the kind of memory and expertise that is suited for this piece.

Anti-China rhetoric has been common amongst Republicans vying for their party's presidential nomination. Jon Huntsman even faced an advert that questioned why he had adopted a Chinese child. "In Campaign 2012, the Chinese Communist Party has become an unexpected factor in American politics. As candidates and voters struggle with how to respond to China’s soaring economic might, the Middle Kingdom is now the source of much debate in the race for the presidency, and it’s getting nasty."

NPR looks at how religious conservatives are struggling to find a winning candidate that they can support. As one evangelical leader said: "each of the serious contenders has flaws: Gingrich has his multiple marriages and ethical violations. Perry has his gaffes and his oops moment. Santorum has little money to run a national campaign."

Centennial of first conservative-moderate GOP presidential fight -- a final winner in 2012? A really good look back at the battle between conservatives and moderates in the Republican Party. It goes back a lot longer than most people think.

Kevin: A study by Accenture finds that "traditional television viewership is experiencing a wholesale collapse". The main findings: "The survey, the results of which are being released Monday, just as the 2012 International Consumer Electronics Show gets underway in Las Vegas, finds that the number of consumers who watch broadcast or cable television in a typical week plunged to 48% in 2011 from 71% in 2009. The same survey, which canvased about 1,000 consumers in each of 10 countries – Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Russia, South Africa, Sweden and the Untied States – also found that the number of consumers who intend to buy a TV set in the next 12 months fell to 32% in 2011 from 35% in 2010."