Doc Searles notes that the long tail has become Chris Anderson's brand. (And although Searles got the link wrong, Chris Anderson indeed is spinning the topic into a book for 2006, and a blog.) Anderson is the Wired editor who write the breakthrough article about the shift from a hit-driven market to a niche-driven one, and dubbed it the long tail. There is no current meme with greater buzz. And it's not just buzz—it's relatively uncontroversial, ecstatic buzz. People aren't merely provoked by the long tail, they are in love with it.

It is always interesting when belief becomes fervency; when acknowledgment of truth becomes impassioned advocacy. As consumers, we love the long tail because it speaks for a celestial marketplace in which every piece of music is available, because there is at least a tiny bit of demand for absolutely everything. As creators we love the long tail because it seems to create a niche for every creation. As individuals we love the long tail because it ratifies our taste and perspective, no matter how personal. The long tail makes everyone welcome and important. In theory it deals with marketplace worth, but in so doing it touches on our own self-worth as culstural consumers and creators.