As an Internet marketer, watching the difference between 2004 and 2008 is like watching your kids grow up gradually, day-by-day, versus your nieces and nephews you see every four years. The advancement and difference in the latter is remarkable and stunning, even though you really have seen the progress, a bit each day, with the former.

One difference this year is the use of YouTube to immediately spread rich records of interviews, segments, opinions, rejoinders, and evidence that has become part of the new cultural fabric of politics, and the body politic is still learning how to respond. A recent clip of Katie Couric’s interview with Sarah Palin is a good example. Couric asks Palin what newspapers she reads, and Palin’s answer varies from most, to all, to any of them. This clip has spread by wildfire via YouTube, blogs, Twitter, Facebook, etc.

But in the Internet age, most, all, and any really could be legitimate answers, and in a nonpartisan spirit, I’d like to offer Governor Palin a slightly different answer, in case she’s asked again:

Couric:

What newspapers do you read?

Palin:

Oh, Katie, that’s such a quaint old-timey question – news “papers” - that’s like asking me what “records” I listen to or what “evening news show” I watch.

Well, I do still get the newspaper from my hometown of Wasilla every week – it’s good to stay connected to my roots, to see what is happening at the community level, and to support the small town business.

And I read the Anchorage Daily News – I am still the Governor of Alaska, after all. Most days I read it online, but I get the Sunday edition delivered to my house because my kids (and Todd!) like to read the Sunday funnies the old-fashioned way.

But that’s about as much “paper” as I’m willing to consume just to get the news.

Of course I have news sources beyond the Alaskan border, Katie. If you were to hack into my Google Reader account (please don’t!) you’d see I have it set up with many feeds, not just from traditional “newspaper” sites, but from a variety of sources with a variety of outlooks, including cable news sites and the best of the blogs. That way I can scan the headlines, read the articles, easily see how the same story is reported from different points of view, and form my own opinions.

And, like many Americans, I have my Google Alerts set up to bring me news on specific topics, and I’m constantly updating it with topics that deserve my attention and consideration as a candidate for Vice President. I don’t know how I managed without that one!

So, how about you, Katie. What "newspapers" do you read?