In light of Thanksgiving here in the US, we’re publishing our weekly round-up a bit earlier this week. Here is a look at some standout brand-building and communications stories that caught our attention – as well as some macro trends and themes we’re tracking:

Strategies & Shifts Reshaping Planning, Branding & Advertising (and Business)

• Are You Listening to the Future of Advertising? (its students)
• Will Social Scoring Change Your Life? (on the growing importance of social influence)
• More on the Differences Between Social Media Influence vs. Popularity
• How to Solve Complex Problems
• Gender Difference in Marketing to Millennials
• More on the Top (Digital) Trends of 2010
• I Want My Twitter TV (the present & future of social viewing – and programming)
• From Focus Groups to ‘Friend’ Groups
• What Is Data Visualization?
• The Storyteller Knows Me
• Brian Eno: The Love & Limits of Technology
• Will Focus Make You Happier?

Innovation, Creativity

• Diagrams That Changed the World
• 21 Things You Might Not Know About Product Design
• Digital Communities Can Learn from ‘Leading Clever People’
• Exploring the Anti-Social Side of Social Media
• A Definition of Digital
• Twitter’s Creative Director Talks Design, UX and Inspiration
• Wikipedia Founder’s Advice: Make Stuff That Doesn’t Suck
• AP Bloggate: A Rebuttal (on Marketing Agencies & UX)

Brand Content (for better and sometimes worse)

• Google Celebrates Thanksgiving with Food-Themed Doodle & Recipes
• Coke Zero LiveCycle: TRON Home Page
• Amazon’s New iPhone App Offers In-Store Price Comparisons, One-Click Purchases
• Burberry’s Christopher Bailey Thanks 3 Million Facebook Fans with Thank You Note

Digital Media, Tech & Marketing News & Resources:

• 2010 Web 2.0 Summit: By the Numbers
• Facebook Alternative Diaspora Releasing Private Alpha Invites
• Tim Berners-Lee: Facebook Could Fragment Web
• Mozilla Challenges Apple & Google with a Decentralized App Store Platform
• Apple Releases iOS 4.2 for iPad, iPhone & iPod Touch
• Curated.by Aims to be the Smithsonian of the Web – But It Needs Your Help
• Why the Future of Search is Social
• Viacom Cuts Off Google TV
• YouTube Readies New Ad Units that Users Can Skip
• Netflix Finally Brings Streaming-Only Plan to US