What the world is reading

Israels New York consulate conducted a news conference through Twitter,the micro-blogging site,as it recognizes that success in neutralizing the Hamas movement in Gaza is as much a public relations challenge as a military one…,writes Noam Cohen. David Saranga,the media head of the consulate,turned up for the session in his best net-savvy language. Twitter is the latest in the arsenal of Internet tools that Israel has employed to take their message to a global audience. I speak to every demographic in a language he understands, he said. If someone only speaks Spanish,I speak in Spanish; if someone is using a platform like Twitter,I want to tweet, the article quotes Saranga.

The Wall Street Journal

As if Things Werent Bad Enough,Russian Professor Predicts End of US

As America looks to change under Barack Obama,Russia is going crazy over a different sort of transformation in Americas immediate future,according to The Wall Street Journals Andrew Osborn. Russian academic Igor Panarin has created a rage with his predictions of an eventual breakup of the United States and the state media is lapping it up. Mr. Panarin posits,in brief,that…the US will break into six pieceswith Alaska reverting to Russian control, writes Osborn. With his latest,Panarin being interviewed as much as twice a day.

The Observer

Does my bum look big in this stress?

Times are bad and stress levels are rising. The Observers David Mitchell,though,takes a tongue-in-cheek look at a survey that says Britons are worrying more than they were a year ago and a research that links obesity levels with anxiety. Quite apart from the fact that both surveys have outcomes that anyone could have guessedpeople are worrying more post-credit crunch because theres more to worry about,and sitting in a chair concentrating on stuff makes you hungrier than just sitting in a chairtaking the time and trouble to prove them seems entirely counterproductive to human happiness, Mitchell says.

The Daily Telegraph

Casting Matt Smith shows that Dr Who is a savvy multi-million pound brand

With seven million people tuning in to watch the newest,youngest Dr Who make his debut,The Telegraphs Andrew Pettie appreciates the choice of Matt Smith in the long-running BBC science fiction television series because he fits into the Doctor-ness. The BBC displayed the programme on giant outdoor screens,an honour usually reserved for such national traditions as the Last Night of the Proms and England getting knocked out of the World Cup on penalties, writes Pettie. The show has become a brand,according to Pettie,with its own merchandise and watched by a startling cross-section of the population.

Blog: The Guardian

The Guardians music critic Dave Simpson has a different take on Liverpool FC captain Steven Gerrards impending hearing over a nightclub assault charge. What riles Simpson is the point of contention that led to the fracas: Gerrard asking the DJ to play a Phil Collins number. Simpson,in A midfield kind of love,moans about footballers cultural tastes: Then again,footballers have long enjoyed dalliances with records that would have been crushed by oncoming traffic had they gone any closer to the middle of the road…Gerrards reputation may recover from the forthcoming court case,but surely Liverpools finest midfielder will never live down the revelation that behind those stunning 30-yarders lurks a passion for Easy Lover, writes Simpson.