the buzz log
Don Imus, Back in Buzz
On Monday, radio showman Don Imus was jawing with a co-host about Dallas Cowboys player Adam "Pacman" Jones. Upon hearing that the beleaguered cornerback has been arrested six times since 2005, the shock jock asked, "What color is he?" Response: "He's African-American." Imus: "Well, there you go, now we know."
And just like that, the Don bounded back into a media firestorm about race. A flurry of articles on the comment ignited in Buzz. "Imus in hot seat again," pronounced CNN. "Did Don Imus make another racial gaffe?" queried New York Magazine.
In Search, demand for "don imus" vaulted more than 4,700%, landing the professional jabber-mouth in our top 10 fastest movers for the day. Related queries for "don imus comments" and "don imus pacman jones" spiked.
On Tuesday, Imus lashed back at the brouhaha. He was making "a sarcastic point," he says, about the treatment of African-American men. A news story on the response immediately rose to the top of Buzz, where it drew hundreds of votes. Whether that's a good sign for Imus or not remains to be seen, though some bloggers have refused to be mollified. Portfolio.com ("Don Imus: Racist, or Just Clueless?") and Bleacher Report ("Why is this guy still on the air?") are just two of many skeptical blogs to gain traction in Buzz today.
The Don Imus School of Success
If you've ever wondered what it takes to make it as a radio personality these days, take a look at Don Imus (+454%).
Along with lame "jokes" and a distinct voice, it seems the Imus school of radio excellence prescribes the curmudgeonly bullying of young athletes. We doubt you missed it, but Imus called the Rutgers women's basketball (+472%) team a bunch of "nappy headed hos."
Imus' ill-conceived remarks caused his previously flat buzz to jump into our top 100 searches. Queries for his show, Imus in the Morning (+338%) also rose to new heights. After this week's requisite apologies and meet-and-greets with Al Sharpton (+867%), the Imus buzz rolled on.
Far be it from us to belittle a competing medium, but is this the best that radio can muster? It's true that Imus and others of his ilk will probably always rise to the surface of drive-time radio. But we're hoping the buzz will die down on the I-man before his two-week suspension plays out.
top movers
| Rank | Subject | 1-Day Move |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ford 400 | Breakout! |
| 2 | Indonesia Ferry | Breakout! |
| 3 | Jordan Chandler | 3481% |
| 4 | Evan Chandler | 2322% |
| 5 | American Music Awards | 1841% |
| 6 | John F. Kennedy | 1529% |
| 7 | Turkey Stuffing Recipes | 1361% |
| 8 | Liam Hemsworth | 1172% |
| 9 | Lou Dobbs | 1142% |
| 10 | Hendrick Motorsports | 888% |
top leaders
| Rank | Subject | Move | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Black Friday | +340 | 1290 |
| 2 | NFL | +489 | 670 |
| 3 | Jennifer Lopez | +451 | 515 |
| 4 | New Moon | -67 | 250 |
| 5 | American Music Awards | +236 | 249 |
| 6 | UFC | -36 | 239 |
| 7 | Miley Cyrus | +66 | 169 |
| 8 | Hulu | -11 | 154 |
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.