Questions surronding the Huffington Post and its merge with AOL.

Questions surronding the Huffington Post and its merge with AOL.
1. Arianna Huffington drew on some of her celebrity contacts early on to popularize the website. Do you think a person without her connections could have been equally sucessful? What strategy changes would a non-celebrity have to make to succeed?
2. Do you expect that AOL’s purchase of The Huffington Post will have a largely positive or negative effect on its viewership? Name some pros and cons and compare them.
3. Beyond Ms.Huffington using her celebrity contacts, what other strategies did the staff implement to make this the number one blog in the blogosphere? Can these same strategies be applied to other blogs? Explain why or why not.

4. What are the possible strategic marketing benifits and drawbacks of the acquisition of the Huffington Post by AOL? Explain.