At the very least it seems like the clustering is algorithmic and "most" of the ranking.
Source: Too lazy to look up the 6 year old article that I kinda remember talking about this.
the river is a chronology http://www.techmeme.com/river
Behind the veneer of snark, he's also a very smart commentator on the biz.
Techmeme River is one of my bookmarks for keeping a pulse on what's happening: http://techmeme.com/river
EDIT: Didn't mean to be off topic. Put another way, "If you really like Techmeme, don't miss Memeorandum for politics."
https://mobile.twitter.com/gaberivera/status/843917237916319...