A method of operating a peer to facilitate fast group communication between subscribers in a peer-to-peer wide area network is disclosed. In the peer-to-peer wide area network, each of the subscribers are affiliated to a talkgroup, and further registered to at least one peer within the peer-to-peer wide area network. In operation, the peer exchanges messages with other peers to determine that one or more peers listed in a talkgroup topology is still active. When the peer receives a media for a talkgroup from a subscriber affiliated to the talkgroup, the peer duplicates the media for the talkgroup, and unicasts the duplicate media to the one or more peers that are listed as active in the talkgroup topology to enable the one or more peers to deliver the media to the respectively registered subscribers affiliated to the talkgroup.