Brijit Index « Brijit

Brijit Index

The Brijit Index is a weekly report on the most popular print, broadcast and online features from www.brijit.com, culled from 100 of the world’s best and most trusted sources.

The Brijit Index reflects the choices of Brijit’s growing community of smart readers and writers, and spotlights the most popular pieces from the past seven days. We believe the Brijit Index will serve as a unique indicator of the issues, ideas, and stories capturing the imagination of a particularly well-read and well-informed community. This weekly report also reinforces the benefits Brijit delivers – for busy people who appreciate quality journalism, for the writers who review these pieces, and for the content producers who want to extend their reach to new and larger audiences online.

CURRENT BRIJIT INDEX

For the seven days ending 17 December 2007:

1 Journey Into Night by David Sedaris, The New Yorker, 17 Dec 2007 — Sedaris recounts a recent transatlantic flight in “Business Elite Class,” where he wrestles with his discomfort over his privilege, panics over how to deal with a seatmate mourning the loss of his mother, and finally summons the courage to ask for more ice cream. Musings, memories, pangs of nostalgia, and some of the most poignant flatulence humor to ever grace the pages of The New Yorker.

2 Let It Die: 23 Songs That Should Never Be Covered Again, A.V. Club, 10 Dec 2007 — Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but does anyone need to hear another American Idol contestant belting out Respect? That question, among others, is pondered by the snarky authors, who share 23 abused rock, R&B, and country tracks that should enter retirement, barring seriously novel interpretation.

3 Everyone’s Poop by Nate Blakeslee, Texas Monthly, December 2007 — This scatological feature has more to offer than just a catchy title. Blakeslee takes on the role of sewage anthropologist for a day as he rides along with one of Austin Water Utility’s team as it performs a pipeline “colonoscopy,” relieving a woman of two rooms full of waste. Refreshingly informative and not at all vulgar.

4 Marrying for Love … of Money by Robert Frank, The Wall Street Journal, 14 Dec 2007

5 Busting Out by Sarah Hepola, Salon, 10 Dec 2007

6 Waropoly: How History’s Most Popular Board Game Helped Defend the Free World by Brian McMahon, Mental Floss, November/December 2007

7 NFL Meteorologists Warn Steaming Black-Guy Heads Occurring Later Every Year, The Onion, 6 Dec 2007

8 Bless This Bottled Water by Lisa Miller, Newsweek, 17 Dec 2007

9 A Tale of Two Giulianis by Michael Shnayerson, Vanity Fair, January 2008

10 The Huckabee Factor by Zev Chafets, The New York Times Magazine, 12 Dec 2007

PAST BRIJIT INDICES