the buzz log
Obama As Joker Drives Web Wild
It may not be Gotham City, but some joker's gone wild in L.A. A poster that mashes up an image of President Obama with the smeared face paint and red lips of Heath Ledger's Joker from "The Dark Knight" has hit the streets, guerilla style. The eerie face is underscored with the title "Socialism." Say, what?
Confusing message aside, the posters are causing a surge of interest on the Web. Queries have heated up the Search box, with lookups on "obama joker," "obama joker shirt," "obama socialist poster," and "obama poster" all soaring. Already a digital form of the poster has popped up on Flickr, Twitter, and Facebook. You can see the image for yourself. (Be warned, it is disturbing.)
As Newsbusters points out, the poster "does not appear to be in the same category as the many benign take-offs on the Shepard Fairey 'Hope' poster."
It sure doesn't. Heath Ledger's Joker was the villain's villain, bent on gleeful destruction. There's no "hope" here. By contrast, the street artist Shepard Fairey created an iconic image to promote the message of the Obama campaign.
So far, the creator of the "Socialist" design has not come forward. Maybe that's wise. Shephard Fairey is fighting a battle over the rights to the photo he used for the "Hope" art. The photo from the "Socialist" poster is taken from a Time magazine cover. It's probably clear who would have the last laugh.
Filed under: Politics, Artists, Barack Obama
Beers With the President
Thursday’s much-anticipated "beer summit" started rocking the Search box as soon as President Obama unveiled his plans to knock back a cold one (or two) with Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Cambridge police officer James Crowley. People are especially interested in which brews the trio will imbibe.
For those wondering why two regular joes get to hang with President Obama, a bit of history: Two weeks ago, Gates and Crowley were embroiled in a controversy when Gates was arrested outside his own home. Gates alleged that the arrest was racially motivated, a charge that Crowley denied. President Obama jumped into the discussion, saying the police "acted stupidly" in arresting Gates.
President Obama has since apologized for his remarks and wants to turn the incident into a "teachable moment." What better way to learn than by drinking during class? The three participants won't be boozing up with the same brand, however. Gates will enjoy Red Stripe, a Jamaican brew. Crowley will reportedly drink Blue Moon. And the president? A man with simple tastes, he's scheduled to drink Bud Light. (What, Schlitz is too fancy?)
The threesome's beer choices has been dissected by experts, and sought out in Search. Queries on "blue moon beer" experienced the biggest spike, but "red stripe" also enjoyed a nice bump. Even Bud Light let out a belch in the Buzz, thanks to Obama's unofficial endorsement. What are the odds we'll see a Bud Light commercial featuring an Obama look-alike at next year's Super Bowl? Better than average, we'd say.
Filed under: Beer, Barack Obama
Obama on Mom Jeans: "They're Comfortable"
Last week, when President Obama threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the All-Star Game in St. Louis, he was probably more concerned with getting the ball over the plate than with his choice of attire. Call it a rookie mistake. The president's baggy pants were mocked as being... brace yourselves... "mom jeans." Now, the leader of the free world has responded to his fashion critics.
In an interview on NBC's "Today Show" that mostly covered serious topics, President Obama acknowledged that he "looked a little frumpy" in his baggy jeans. In his defense, Mr. Obama said that he hates to shop and that "those jeans are comfortable." The President went on to say: "For people who want a president to look great in tight jeans, I'm sorry." No apology necessary, Mr. President. The thought of our Commander-In-Chief wearing skinny jeans is a terrifying prospect.
The interview, which in our unofficial estimation marks the first time a sitting U.S. president apologized for not wearing tighter denim, sparked renewed interest in the infamous jeans. Searches surged on "obama's mom jeans" and "obama wears mom jeans." We even noticed a few queries on "what kind of jeans does obama wear?". Perhaps some brave souls are looking to copy the President's devil-may-care look. If it'll help stop the skinny-jeans menace, we're all for it.
Filed under: Barack Obama, Jeans
Eulogy for a Teleprompter
It was only a matter of time. After tirelessly serving him through an exhausting presidential campaign, groundbreaking election, and six months in office, President Obama's teleprompter has prompted its last prompt. It was nearly 2 years old.
Teleprompter of the United States (TOTUS) gave selflessly, asking nothing in return. Despite this, it became the butt of many jokes, some made by the man who loved it most. At a White House press corps dinner in May, the president joked that he wanted to "speak from the heart." On cue, TOTUS rose into view, much to the audience's delight.
Vice President Joe Biden got a taste of what life without TOTUS would be like, while speaking at the Air Force Academy's graduation ceremony in May. After the wind blew down the road-weary teleprompter, Biden realized the gravity of the situation and asked, "What am I going to tell the president when I tell him his teleprompter isn't working? What will he do then?"
The world found out the answer to that question Monday, while the president was speaking about urban policy at the White House. Although it was just a few minutes into his speech, the exhausted TOTUS could prompt no more. It collapsed from its stand, crashing to the floor and shattering its glass plate. With shards of glass lying at his feet, President Obama exclaimed, "Oh goodness!", then quickly collected himself and apologized to the tittering audience. Hardly missing a beat, he continued his speech—using the backup teleprompter positioned at the other side of the podium.
Has the president learned from TOTUS' untimely demise? Or will TOTUS' backup suffer the same cruel fate of overuse and under-appreciation? Only time will tell.
Filed under: Barack Obama
Barack Obama, Puppet Leader
Given the continued Search interest, amusement parks will a Fourth of July weekend destination for many. Those headed to Orland's Magic Kingdom on Independence Day might want to stop by a revamped Hall of Presidents, where an animatronic Barack Obama—AKA Robobama—makes his debut.
Animatronics is, as HowStuffWorks puts it, a "mechanized puppet." The administration apparently is so tickled by this honor, the White House blog posted a "behind-the-scenes video" of the president reading the oath of office and a Disney-penned speech— tinkered a bit, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
The Florida newspaper also reports that Obama's standing with good company (Abraham Lincoln) and represents the "most advanced figure," although "not a completely new generation." Who knew Disney imagineers were pundits?
Filed under: Amusement Parks, Disney, Presidents, Barack Obama
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.
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