Google seems to be going even more social on us by introducing the Google News Badges.

If you want your contacts to know what you're reading, make it public.

Google News Badges [googlenewsblog.blogspot.com]

Starting today, in the U.S. edition of Google News, you can see how voracious a news reader you are by earning Google News badges as you read articles about your favorite topics. The more you read, the higher level badge you’ll receive, starting with Bronze, then moving up the ladder to Silver, Gold, Platinum and finally, Ultimate.

Your badges are private by default, but if you want, you can share your badges with your friends. Tell them about your news interests, display your expertise, start a conversation or just plain brag about how well-read you are. You can also add custom sections by hovering on a badge and clicking “add section” to read more about your favorite topics.

When stopped in the street and asked survey question on which media I read, I never gave them a serious answer as it starts to paint a public picture, from a marketing point of view.