LinkedIn Today gets Facebook-esque commenting, liking and trending features

Now that LinkedIn has gotten rid of all of the Twitter spam from its service, the company is now focusing on bubbling up great content via its “Today” product.

Today, the company announced some new social features for Today, including commenting, liking and trending. The hope is that your network of colleagues will be submitting interesting news, and you’ll trust their recommendations on what you’re going to read. Yes, sounds a bit Facebookish to me, but it’s not a network of your kinda-friends or family members, so LinkedIn gets a pass here.

Here’s a full rundown on the features, which should be expected for a product such as this:

Commenting & Liking: Sometimes the commentary about a news article can be just as insightful as the article itself. To that end, articles on LinkedIn Today will now include social gestures which will enable our 161 million member professionals to engage and create a dialogue around the news headlines that matter most to them, as well as learn what is currently trending online. This means, members will be able to see a snapshot of what’s top of mind among their professional networks.

Trending in Your Network: LinkedIn Today was built on the premise of providing a relevant, customizable news experience based on key news and updates trending in your industry and the other industries you choose to follow. Starting today, we will begin rolling a new tab called “Trending in Your Network.” By simply clicking on this tab, members will have yet another filter to sort through all of the professional news articles and industry updates, based on those articles that are currently the most popular among members of their professional networks, regardless of their industry.

I’ve personally gone back to using LinkedIn more since there isn’t as much noise. I like the fact that the company has dedicated a page to all of this content, as I simply need to pick and choose when I get a bunch of articles and links thrown in my face. The main LinkedIn feed needs to stay as quiet as possible, so that I can pick out important connections or events in my network.

There is definitely a possibility that you could build a stronger relationship with a connection based on the content that they share, since you’ll see their avatar popping up in comments and alongside the headlines themselves.