topten

TOP TEN CHAT TOPICS FOR 2003
Well above any other chat topic, the war in Iraq remains solidly the
number one chat topic for the year. During the months of April and May, the war was being discussed in the vast majority of chat rooms and discussion boards.
Internet chat also played several roles within the Armed Forces. The Detroit Free Press featured an exclusive article profiling a U.S. Marine Lieutenant who's duty consisted of surfing chat rooms and engaging in conversations with chatters. "Commanders told him to get on the Internet and give them a chance to communicate with the armed forces."
(1)
Secure chat rooms are also one of the major communications tools used by all U.S. Armed Forces, enabling them to keep in touch between the front lines and headquarters. U.S. Navy ships use chat for internal communications, edging out the old standby ships telephone systems. (2)
In Internet chat news for the year, the single largest story was the
closing of chat rooms on 28 of MSN's International sites. From Instant Messaging Planet- "Chat areas in the U.S., Japan and Canada will continue to remain open, however, but only to users who agree to pay a monthly subscription fee." (3)
The upcoming U.S. Presidential race has chat rooms buzzing with
activity, more so than in past elections, and Politics ranks as the
second of our top ten. With the election moving into cyberspace, the clear forerunner is Howard Dean, the "wired" candidate. (4)
Rounding out our top ten topics for 2003 are:
Personal relationships
African American
Health
Sports
School Alumni
Depression
(the number one health topic of the year)
Lord of The Rings
Computer user assistance
Internet chat remains as the third leading use of The Internet, behind
email and web surfing, and is moving into new territory as a business tool, facilitating online customer support. There is an increase in online retailers integrating both online chat and messenger services into their sites. Financial and investor related chat rooms are also gaining popularity, and will continue to do so.
The outlook for Internet chat into 2004 is that chat and message boards will remain popular and become more focused as people seek chat rooms on their favorite subjects.
The editors of Chatmag have compiled this list from our own directory search, search engine queries, and visiting hundreds of chat rooms and message boards throughout the year.

(1) Detroit Free Press. Laptop is a weapon in this war of words.
http://www.freep.com/news/portraitsofwar/rushing.htm
(2) Federal Computer Week. DOD chat use exploded in Iraq.
http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/0623/web-panel-06-23-03.asp
(3) Instant Messaging Planet. MSN Rethinks Chat Rooms, Promotes IM Instead.
http://www.instantmessagingplanet.com/public/article.php/3084311
(4) Pittsburgh Post Gazette. A wired Dean is altering conduct of
politics.
http://www.post-gazette.com/election/20031116deannet1116p2.asp
TOP TEN CHAT TOPICS FOR 2002
Although a regional topic, and short lived, the D.C. area sniper was the top chat topic of 2002. In chat rooms on every IRC network and in the major Web based chat rooms, people not only in The United States but worldwide were discussing the sniper attacks during the crisis. Not since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 did one topic hold as much interest.
Second to the sniper attacks was Iran and Terrorist Attacks chat. The possible war with Iraq is in the forefront, and will hold as the leading chat topic into 2003.
Depression chat rooms are listed separately from Health related, due to the overwhelming numbers of persons seeking depression related chat rooms.
Travel related include both regional chat rooms by nation, and tourist/travel chat rooms.
The remaining top 10 are:
   African American
   Health related
   Big beautiful women
   Travel related
   Depression
   Lord of The Rings
   Harry Potter
   Interracial
Internet chat remains as the third leading use of The Internet, behind email and web surfing, and is moving into new territory as a business tool, facilitating online customer support. There is an increase in online retailers integrating both online chat and messenger services into their sites. Financial and investor related chat rooms are also gaining popularity, and will continue to do so.
The outlook for Internet chat into 2003 is that chat and message boards will remain popular and become more focused as people seek chat rooms on their favorite subjects. Chat will also be the forum of choice for both fan and political/news discussions.
Chatmag.com continuously updates Internet chat news and information on our News page at:
http://www.chatmag.com/help/news.html

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