Digg Is The Apotheosis Of Niche Media

I was just on Digg, looking at the top ten list on the homepage, and it suddenly struck me that Digg is the apotheosis of niche media — of the niche, by the niche, and for the niche. Never has another media company so perfectly captured the interests and ethos of one defined group of people — in Digg’s case, under 25, male, liberal, interested in tech:

This list is just the right combination of tech news + tech how-to + weird and puerile news + a dash of liberal politics — no single editor could compile such a perfect list. Digg could not be further afield from a mainstream audience, but for the Digg niche, it is perfection.

Unfortunately for Digg, it has little or no value for anyone outside this niche, and chances are it will never be able to expand beyond this niche — it can’t without ruining its niche perfect pitch. But if Digg continues, as it has, to focus on this audience, it will continue to own them.