Do you like speaking with humans or inanimate objects? I think most people prefer to speak with humans, and that's especially true when it comes to interacting with companies. In fact, customers get frustrated when companies limit or dehumanize interaction, especially when product or customer service is involved. But what's the right way for a brand to activate itself on Twitter? Specifically, is it better for companies to actively engage on Twitter with a brand profile, or a human profile?

I know, I know. I said that I wasn't going to write about the newspaper industry anymore. But don't worry, I'm not. Today's column is about something much bigger and more important than just the newspaper industry. It is about the watchdog role of media and my concerns about who will fill that role for us in the future, as traditional media companies -- newspapers, local broadcasters and news magazines -- become less and less able to do so.

In case you missed it -- and you very well may have missed it, because it happened awfully quickly -- the Web has finally become a legitimate channel for the promotion and distribution of music, and the music industry is finally embracing this fact. Of course, this can be debated, since the Web also pretty much killed the record industry at the very same time.

Every so often there are some must-read posts out there. I think if you are in the advertising and marketing industry, Randall Rothenberg's recent post "'A Bigger Idea': A Manifesto on Interactive Advertising Creativity" is one of those.

On Sundays, I like to peruse the content of the week's conversations and inventory the collection. Such an inventory is just a tally. Our lives and headspace contain a lot. So, as I reflected this Sunday, and looked onward, I asked myself: When it comes to our business, what are some of the most meaningful conversations we can be having right now? There were four themes that presented themselves.

David Churbuck, a blogger and marketing exec, said that cloud computing -- aka "the cloud" -- needs to alleviate the "nasty, stupid experience" of migrating from an old PC to a new one. I work on a Mac, not a PC, yet I still agree entirely.

I just started reading Jeff Jarvis's book "What Would Google Do?" -- and I love it. He writes about the very successful -- and fundamentally different -- approach that Google takes in running its business relative to virtually every other company in the world. So I'd like to follow his advice and turn the question back on Google. Why? Because as I read the book, it occurred to me that Google has done some things that are not "what Google would do."

Many people say the 30-second spot is dead, which may very well be true -- but television is far from dead, and it may actually be starting to learn a thing or two from the Internet that will keep it alive and kicking for many years to come!

There is a quiet battle raging in the advertising industry over who will become the Agency of Record (AOR) for marketers' social media efforts. With traditional media for delivering advertising declining in reach and effectiveness, and an even greater call for advertising efficiency in a down economy, becoming a marketer's social media AOR can be a huge win and provide a map to a much-needed new business model and revenue stream for agencies.

In our current environment, I would expect a lot of talk about shifting models. Yet, the urgency varies by situation and quest. As we re-model, are we guided by vision or salvation? Are we actively driving to a real future -- or feverishly re-acting ourselves down the highway to perpetuate a dated model or entrepreneurial dream?