Len,

I think you're on to something. As a media relations professional, I find that social news sharing is creating a powerful echo chamber in the news cycle -- for better or worse. You can also see this effect on link aggregating web sites such as Linkfest.com, where its algorithms tend to amplify certain highly shared stories at the expense of others.

I wonder... is there anyone out there tracking ticker/company mentions by these influencers against daily trading volumes?