If that’s a question that’s crossed your lips, then you’ve got a lot to learn about BlogHer and the ladies (and gentlemen!) who came out en masse for the two-day event in New York this year.

Last month I had the pleasure of moderating a panel called “Something Regulated” hosted by Digital Somethings, Business Development Institute, and Pfizer. The panel consisted of a dynamic group of communicators responsible for driving social media in their organizations.

It’s easy to forget that the term “social” is as much intended to describe behavior as it is a reference to the media or platform. In the May issue of PRWeek, I had the pleasure of sharing my perspective on the best way to incorporate offline experiences into a social media strategy to encourage engagement. As I was thinking it over, perhaps the real question was “How can social media create engagement in a way that produces offline behavior?”

It’s getting difficult to stay on top of all the new social networking and digital communications platforms available today: Google Buzz, Foursquare, Posterous and Google Wave are seeking to match the more established communities like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. It wasn’t always like this; new media channels didn’t just sprout up every week. To say it’s changed the daily activities of PR professionals over the past ten years is a drastic understatement.

This past Wednesday, myself along with my Cohn & Wolfe Digital peers Jim Wells and Katie Greene, had the chance to attend The Consumerist’s first meetup at Botanica Bar. For those not familiar with The Consumerist, it’s a highly influential blog with more than half a million unique monthly visitors known for its witty and brutally honest commentary on consumer issues and activism.

Speaking at last week’s Social Communications & Healthcare Conference (#BDI), Pfizer VP/Worldwide Comunications Ray Kerins said that Pfizer wants to have online conversations with its consumers. However, he thinks it is unfair to ask company employees to risk their job implementing a social media program that the FDA might later deem a violation, despite its refusal to issue guidance in this area. Nevertheless, the company just two weeks ago launched its corporate Twitter page (@Pfizer_News) and is starting to proactively communicate with its audience in real-time.

Nothing has had a greater impact on my view of social media more than the book Groundswell, specifically its Social Technographic Profile, a research tool helping brands to identify how its customers use social media technologies. So I became intrigued when I heard that imc² adapted Forrester’s technographic profile tool for healthcare.

On Wednesday, June 24th, my colleague Rachelle Spero will be presenting a “Digital Exploratorium” in Geneva.  The focus is on conversational marketing and how brands can: effectively build a listening infrastructure; identify market influencers and join the conversation; create engaging content and experiences, and much more.

Because of recent FDA and FTC rulings, now more than ever, understanding of the legal landscape is the overriding paradigm in digital communications. It’s where every program in every discipline must begin. Innovation will remain within reach, but simply (and perhaps bluntly) put, advertisers and marketers may have to start earning media the way public relations has earned it for years.

There is a concern among content creators that the Internet does not have a safety net to protect their assets. By content creators, I’m talking about artists of all flavors - from Metallica protecting their extensive library of head-banging genius, to Bill Gates protecting his latest version of Windows, to a college kid’s first keg stand photos.

It was a breakout year for digital PR in 2008. Marketers, politicians, publishers and agencies delivered strong integrated communications programs with a heavy social media focus. The digital transformation of PR continues to accelerate as more audiences use the web as their primary news source. Here’s a quick look at the developments, trends, and the types of programs we are discussing with our clients this year.