The New York Times most emailed list is a funny thing. Global political importance does not make an article most emailed, and neither does good writing.

The most emailed list is determined by demographics. Tech lovers have more of a propensity to email articles than people following the news in Iraq. But every once in a while an article comes along that is so disturbing and astonishing that demographics disappear, and it becomes something everyone should read.

The MySpace suicide story, currently number one on the list, is the new What Shamu Taught Me About A Happy Marriage.

The tale of how an embittered mother used MySpace to torture her teenage daughter’s ex-best friend, eventually leading to the girl’s death, reassured us that we could still be shocked. It’s the kind of article that anyone would be interested in, not just MySpace users, if there are any of those left.