the buzz log
Battleground States Buzz Countdown: The Political Trinity
Tuesday will be E-Day, when the lines will be long and the media blitz intense, especially for the biggest three swing states: Ohio (20 electoral votes), Pennsylvania (21) and Florida (27). In the past seven days, voters from all three have turned online to make their final decisions on presidential contenders John McCain (R) and Barack Obama (D).
Among the shared searches for McCain:
• "mccain on snl," "john mccain biography," "john mccain website," "john mccain campaign," "john mccain meet the press," "mccain tax calculator," "support mccain palin," "celebrities for mccain."
Among the shared searches for Obama:
• "barack obama jokes," "barack hussein obama," "barak obama antichrist prophecy," "barack obama family," "barack obama infomercial," "barack obama speech," "barack obama tax calculator," "barack obama website," "is obama a muslim," "la times obama," "obama assassination," "obama citzenship," "obama for president," "obama gun control," "obama health care plan," "republicans for obama."
• Virginia and North Carolina
• Nevada and Colorado
• Montana and New Hampshire
• New Mexico and Virginia
• Indiana and Missouri
Troop Activity | |||
| Ohio | Pennsylvania | Florida | |
| Obama | 86% | 83% | 80% |
| Biggest McCain Spike | "mccain.com" (+643%) | "john mccain pictures" (+802%) | "cindy mccain bio" (+659%) |
| Biggest Obama Spike | "barack obama's father" (+28,879%) | "barack obama's father" (+69,058%) | "barack obama's father" (+32,473%) |
| Distinctive McCain Searches | "john mccain family," "john mccain daughter," "meghan mccain" | "how old is john mccain," "cindy mccain plastic surgery" | See Pennsylvania |
| Distinctive Obama Searches | "obama effigy," "obama not us citizen," "obama on abortion," "obama tax cut calculator" | "biden obama," "obama speech tonight," "vote obama" | "barack obama on tv," "barack obama pledge of allegiance," "barack obama quotes," "barack obama tv commercial," "facts about obama," "how old is barack obama," "obama antichrist nostradamus," "obama coal," "obama myspace layouts," "obama rally," "obama terrorist" |
Ohio
Insider View: Good mood pervates the long lines for early voting. The Plain Dealer abstracts the local blog mood, and also profiles how black churches are moving away from political activism. Obama may be too different, according to McClatchy Newspapers, but Time believes it may all rest on a single county.
Pennsylvania
Insider View: Pennsylvania governors past and present weighed in on the Early Show. The Republican Party dusted off Reverend Jeremiah Wright for an ad. KYW News Radio points out felons on parole or probation have the right to vote.
Florida
Insider View: Despite estimates of six-hour wait times, early voters stuck it out. Governor Charles Crist extended early voting hours last week, a move that some claim doesn't benefit the Republicans. Meanwhile, rather than wait until the last moment, local Democrats filed a lawsuit against the GOP over bad addresses. A Florida State University research talked to NPR about how weather changes an election.
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curious scenes from battleground states
Filed under: Politics, Elections, Presidents, Barack Obama, John McCain
Battleground States Buzz Countdown: Virginia and North Carolina
Virginia holds a lucky 13 electoral votes and North Carolina 15. In the past seven days, the two have thrown everything plus the kitchen sink at Yahoo! Search to dig into details about presidential hopefuls John McCain (R) and Barack Obama (D). In both states, one out of 10 queries checks out McCain, while Obama holds 86% of searches (the remaining 4% focuses on the campaign wives).
Below details what Virginians and North Carolinians have been tracking. Follow these links to find what other battleground residents have been contemplating in these waning electoral days:
• Nevada and Colorado
• Montana and New Hampshire
• New Mexico and Virginia
• Indiana and Missouri
Troop Activity: Locals are checking in for McCain pictures, bio, website, campaign, family, "Meet the Press" appearance, and—oh yes—his "Saturday Night Live" double cameo. The Republican did a skit alongside Tina Fey (masquerading once again as his VP pick), and wife Cindy popped up as well.
Meanwhile, scrutiny remains on Obama's parents (especially his father), grandparents, daughters, and the straight tale of his great uncle Charlie Payne. Questions continue to plague him about his citizenship, but also spiking high are examinations into his tax plan (+420%). The desire for t-shirts are higher than "anti barack obama jokes," and more people are checking out "republicans for obama" than the group "obama sucks."
Final Offensives: The real Sarah palin did her own Saturday night, live in Henrico County before 8,000 supporters, while McCain spoke earlier in two Virginia spots. Obama pulled in 10,000 at the Virginia Beach Amphitheater two days earlier on Oct. 30. Campaign surrogates cruising the state include Mike Huckabee and three former Vietnam War POWS for McCain, while celebrities and Caroline Kennedy follow in Obama's wake.
Insider View: Salon profiled Palin's appeal as a true conservative. Meanwhile, News-Record reviewed the strategies of the 2008 campaign soundtrack. One song that crosses party lines: Brooks & Dunn's "Only in Ameica."
Troop Activity: Pollsters declare a dead heat between the two candidates. The Old North State poses less queries as their fellow battleground state, but basically the same questions. One deviation: North Carolinians are checking out "celebrities for mccain."
Final Offensives: Palin pulled another Saturday night, live, at the State Fairgrounds. Obama plans a Monday stop.
Insider View: The stories are coming fast, furious and colorful: Local officials aren't tickled by an anti-Obama casket at a polling place. North Carolinians have been talking in terms of black and white, and the racial gradations in between. Tennesseans lend their organizing efforts to its neighbor. The McClatchy Newspapers report that flawed ballot design may inadvertently disenfranchise state voters their presidential choice. Finally, critically acclaimed HBO series "The Wire" wrapped up this year, but the ensemble cast worked together to stump for Obama ... making pun-dits happy about the metaphoric possibilities.
Filed under: Politics, Elections, Presidents, Barack Obama, John McCain
Who Is Joe the Plumber?
The third and final presidential debate wasn't about Barack the Senator. And it wasn't about John the maverick, either. Instead it was all about Joe the plumber.
The debate was fairly unremarkable, save for repeated references to a plumber from Toledo, Ohio named Joe Wurzelbacher. Sen. McCain made the first reference when he chided his democratic rival for wanting to raise taxes on people like ol' Joe. That's standard—politicians often make allusions to "regular folks" to prove that they understand real problems.
But then it got weird. Sen. Obama mentioned the suddenly famous plumber, too. And then Sen. McCain talked about Joe some more. It was almost as if both candidates thought the entire election rode on Joe's vote. By the end of the debate, "Joe the plumber" had been mentioned a grand total of 20 times. That's more than "change" and "reform" combined.
The bizarre exchange inspired both the searchers and the bloggers. Queries on "who is joe the plumber" and "joe wurzelbacher" both skyrocketed. Meanwhile, blogs and papers from the Buzz attempted to shed some light on the man behind the socket wrench. The New York Times explains how Joe and Sen. Obama met and discussed Obama's tax plan for small businesses (like, ahem, plumbers).
Politico reports that Joe isn't about to surrender his 15 minutes. He's already talked to Katie Couric and he'll be ruminating on his sudden fame during morning news programs. Tune in, but don't expect to hear who he's voting for. Media Bistro writes that Joe plans to keep that between himself and the lever (well, assuming he's registered).
Filed under: Elections, Barack Obama, John McCain
Who Won the Debate?
The experts said this was John McCain's last best chance to turn the tide. The election has been going Barack Obama's way, and his republican rival needed a big win in the third and final debate. Did Sen. McCain get it? The polls say one thing, but do the pundits agree?
The Polls
According to a national poll that CNN conducted after the debate, 58% of people felt Barack Obama won the debate, while 31% felt that John McCain performed better. The poll also indicates that the majority of people polled felt Obama would do a better job on the economy, health care, and taxes. Additionally, those polled felt Obama was more likable and the stronger leader.
While CNN's poll suggests an Obama landslide, the folks at Politico have different results. According to an "exclusive survey" of undecided voters, 49% of folks felt Sen. Obama won, while 46% believed Sen. McCain could claim victory. Politico notes that the 3-point difference is within the poll's margin of error.
CBS News conducted its own poll of uncommitted voters and found that Barack Obama won the third debate by a wide margin: 53% believed that Sen. Obama was stronger while 22% sided with Sen. McCain. A full 25% thought it was too close to call. It wasn't all bad news for McCain, though. According to the poll, more uncommitted voters trust the Arizona senator to handle a crisis.
The Pundits
ABC analyst (and former Bill Clinton aide) George Stephanopoulos wrote that this was McCain's best effort, but that Obama was still the victor. Stephanopoulos credited Obama's ability to stay cool and not grow exasperated during his opponent's attacks.
Fox News asked a collection of in-house experts who won the debate, and the opinions were...well...fair and balanced. Some felt that McCain was feisty (in a good way) and proved that he is ready for a fight. Others believed that McCain didn't score the huge hit he needed to stop Obama's momentum.
Time's Mark Halperin graded both candidates on style, substance, offense, and defense. The columnist felt Obama did well (he earned a "B"), but that McCain bested him in all areas. The Maverick scored an A-.
Filed under: Elections, Barack Obama, John McCain
Dress Code at the Voting Booth
Both Barack Obama and John McCain have passionate supporters. Oddly, on Election Day, that enthusiasm could work against the candidates.
According to several sources within Yahoo! Buzz, voters who wear a candidate's t-shirt to the polling place may be told to take a hike. NPR reports the law "requires poll workers to keep political displays away from the voting booth." A "political display" could include a shirt, button, hat, unitard, whatever.
This rule has been on the books for years, but some predict that this will be the first time it is widely enforced. Supporters for both parties, but especially those who back Obama, are known for wearing official shirts and buttons. If they show up to do their patriotic duty while adorned in such attire, there could be some drama.
Or maybe not. Other articles within the Buzz point out that, at worst, the poll worker could ask the voter to turn their shirt inside out or remove the button. Odds of a riot are extremely slim. Our advice: No matter who you're voting for, stick with a plain white t-shirt on November 4. Or, if you prefer, a non-political themed unitard.
Filed under: Elections, Barack Obama, John McCain
top movers
| Rank | Subject | 1-Day Move |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nidal Malik Hasan | Breakout! |
| 2 | Fort Hood Shooting | Breakout! |
| 3 | Tyrannosaurus Rex | Breakout! |
| 4 | Fort Hood | 43518% |
| 5 | Tropical Storm Ida | 4377% |
| 6 | Willie Aames | 3325% |
| 7 | Shannon Dedrick | 3299% |
| 8 | Gretchen Rossi | 2702% |
| 9 | Epic Mickey | 2583% |
| 10 | Lee Harvey Oswald | 1907% |
top leaders
| Rank | Subject | Move | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Danica Patrick | +194 | 207 |
| 2 | Fort Hood | +185 | 185 |
| 3 | Angelina Jolie | +114 | 164 |
| 4 | Rihanna | +39 | 157 |
| 5 | New York Yankees | +54 | 154 |
| 6 | Alicia Keys | +139 | 153 |
| 7 | +1 | 153 | |
| 8 | NFL | +6 | 138 |
what's the buzz?
A subject's buzz score is the percentage of Yahoo! users searching for that subject on a given day, multiplied by a constant to make the number easier to read. Weekly leaders are the subjects with the greatest average buzz score for a given week.
For more detailed information, visit our FAQ.