the buzz log
March Forecast and February Buzz
What lies ahead, and one last look back, through the Web prism...
Women's History Month can celebrate a woman in the White House—on this season's "24" (March 1-31)... Following Huckabee, Fred Thompson makes launching a new talk show a trend among former presidential hopefuls (2) ... "American Idol" finally gets down to the Top 12 (5)... Mush for the Iditarod dog sled race (7) ... SXSW, anyone (13) ... Watch your back, it's Brutus out there (15) ... On the eve of March Madness (19 on), a DVD release of "Twilight" hysteria (19)... Spring's here (20) ... Light's out for Earthhour (28) ...
and now...
The Buzz That Was: A February Look Back...
In the year's shortest month...
...America had a big pill to swallow to get stimulated, but President Obama tried to talk us through it and bribe us with a puppy.
...Steeled for a win, but Super Bowl 2009 turned out surprisingly close. Strangest winning play: Denny's Grand Slam Giveaway.
...Michael Phelps' reputation held, but Kellog got punished. The sports world however had already moved on when the SI's Swimsuit Issue came in the mail.
...Joy over a miracle birth turned into recriminations as Nadya Suleman got villainized as "Octomom." Newest mom role model: giant stingray.
...Domestic violence became a musical issue with the Chris Brown and Rihanna fight.
...Bobby Jindal aside, people have still been monitoring the "alaska volcano eruption" online.
...third lowest Oscars telecast rating, Jennifer Aniston shared camera angles with the ex, but to sum it up: Jai Ho!
Search Terms on Yahoo! with the Biggest Percentage Changes
- Nadya Suleman (off the charts)
- Chris Brown and Rihanna Fight (off the charts)
- Elizabeth Wong (off the charts)
- Obama Stimulus Plan Details (+46,422%)
- Super Bowl Ads 2009 (+29,772%)
- Valentine's Day Recipes (+28,937%)
- Rihanna Pictures (+27,775%)
- Bar Rafaeli Hot (+27,249%)
- Economic Stimulus Bill 2009 (+20,644%)
- Jade Goody (+19,274%)
Filed under: Music, Oscars, Monthly Wrapup, Barack Obama, Wrap Up
Caught Between a 30 Rock and a Slumdog
In a week when South Asians ruled the Oscars and another responded to the president, it was inevitable that someone would tie the two together. Sure, we'd expect it from the blogosphere...but Time, which once listed Bobby Jindal among its 2007 list of "People Who Mattered"? Its Swampland blog assessed Jindal's response as proving "limits to the Slumdog Millionaire touch of gold." Post name? "Jai No!"
The "Slumdog" comparison, however tenuous, might be better than the one circulating online: "bobby jindal is kenneth the page" (off the charts), as in the perky Georgian from NBC's "30 Rock."
Which actually inspires an idea for Jindal to rebound from this criticism: Declare a run for 2016, with Tina Fey as his running mate. Sarah Palin accent optional.
Oscar Leftovers
Last wandering thoughts...and Search spikes...triggered by the 81st annual Academy Awards:
Presentation, People, Presentation
- Character actors opted for the old "fashion-inverse-to-talent" rule as Tilda Swinton (+1,242% up in searches) went mousy beige and Philip Seymour Hoffman (+326%) matched his tuxedo with a knit cap.
- Jennifer Aniston ended up being the evening's most popular presenter, according to searches. Nothing like having the camera pan twice to reaction shots from your ex and his current lady in the front row during your segment.
- Robert Pattinson brought tween cred to the fusty old Academy. His English accent makes the "Twilight" vamp that much more deliciously dangerous.
- Bringing up the delicate "age" question (in order of Web queries): How old is Jerry Lewis (82), Sophia Loren (74), Miley Cyrus (16) and Goldie Hawn (63)?
- No truth to the rumor that Jessica Biel's dress doubled as a towel dispenser backstage. Someone tell her beau Justin Timberlake, this is a wardrobe malfunction.
The Old Song-and-Dance
- How well did Hugh Jackman do? Enough to make the top 5 most-searched 2009 onstage hosts, and stimulate online investigations into his bio, films, wife, and how he looks in the buff.
- Natalie Portman likens co-presenter Ben Stiller's homage to Joaquin Phoenix as someone who works in a "Hasidic meth lab." Good idea... forget Phoenix's rap: Phoenix and Stiller either as the Hasidic Blues Brothers or a ZZ Top tribute band.
- Beyonce may have lip-synched, but she's too popular for Searches to care. Besides, they're busy looking up the lyrics to winning Oscar song, "Jai Ho."
- Angelina Jolie pulled in the most searches of any nominee, but disappointed a few when she didn't adopt the cast of "Slumdog Millionaire."
- Kate Winslet snapped her losing streak and snags most popular Oscar winner on the Web. Will Jackman watch her movie now?
- Most popular spouse? Husband: Matthew Broderick (to Sarah Jessica Parker). Wife Robin Wright Penn (to Sean Penn).
- Gone too soon: The memory of Heath Ledger evokes Web nostalgia for his old movies, former co-stars like Shannyn Sossamon and even the late James Dean.
- "Man on Wire" high-wire artist Philippe Petit balanced the Oscar for best documentary on his chin. Let's bring the Oscars to Vegas, baby!
Winners' (and Losers') Circle
Filed under: TV, Award Shows, Oscars, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Biel
Stuffing the Oscar Ballot: The Populist Take on the Odds
"Slumdog Millionaire" your favorite? Would you bet on it?
Some may be, as searches unroll for "printable oscar ballot," "oscar odds" and "oscar predictions" for the February 22 Academy Awards. Only an invitation-only club of about 6,000 people get to vote, but that's no excuse not to lay down some cash (or bet chores).
Certainly the Buzz overflows with all sorts of calculations. Given director Danny Boyle's winning streak at other award ceremonies, Bloombsberg reports that the film's favorable odds range from 90 to 99 percent. Other seeming shoe-ins are Mickey Rourke (best actor), Kate Winslet (best actress), and Heath Ledger (best supporting actor). In macabre fashion, betting against the last choice would pay off $40 or $50 for every dollar placed.
The challenge is more esoteric in categories like costume or sound editing, but betting site Betfair generously gives its takes.
Okay, so what do the people think? Here are the results from trolling through nominee searches on Yahoo! this past week.
- Best Picture: Crowd-pleaser "Slumdog Millionaire"" has more than double the searches of "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button."
- Best Animated Picture: "Kung Fu Panda" doubled in look-ups recently to move past "Wall-E," but don't discount the sentimental and environmental favorite.
- Best Director: Could former child star Ron Howard ("Frost/Nixon") pull an upset over Danny Boyle? He does edge past in queries, perhaps because TV Week cruelly blames Opie in advance for expected poor telecast ratings.
- Best Actor: Admittedly, people aren't just looking for talent when scoping out Brad Pitt ("Benjamin Button"), but then again more than a quarter of Mickey Rourke ("The Wrestler") queries are for his plastic surgery photos. Longtime Search leader Pitt barely squeaks by, so the benefit of the doubt goes to the comeback king.
- Best Actress: Always popular Angelina Jolie ("Changeling") gets more searches than her competitors combined. However, Kate Winslet ("The Reader") pulls specific lookups for her role. Yes, circumstance usually looks dim when Meryl Streep's in the arthouse ("Doubt"), but encouraging signs point to Winslet.
- Best Supporting Actor: Even if Heath Ledger ("The Dark Knight") lost, history would probably misremember him as the winner. Anyhow, he's got the huge Search advantage over Robert Downey, Jr. ("Tropic Thunder").
- Best Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz ("Vicky Cristina Barcelona") burns Web-hot every time she gets in the news. Distant second is Marisa Tomei ("The Wrestler"), with Amy Adams ("Doubt") not too far behind.
By the way, as for Best Picture, at least one Vegas bookie (ok, "executive director of race and sports operations" at Wynn Las Vegas) thinks the spoiler could be "Milk." Just don't cry over it.
Filed under: Movies, Award Shows, Oscars
Buzz Multiplex: Darkness Returns
Why so furious?
Some fans of "The Dark Knight" feel the blockbuster got cheated out of Academy recognition for best director and best picture, but at least they have a chance this weekend for box office payback. The Christopher Nolan vehicle's not the only snubbed film opening in wide release this week. Could a perceived Oscar snub be as powerful an audience aphrodisiac as a nomination? At least in the Buzz Multiplex, a statuette isn't required to be among the three top-searched movies on Yahoo! this week.
1. The Dark Knight: The IMAX Experience (PG-13). Just one day after the anniversary of Heath Ledger's death, his posthumous action-adventure film gets another release in movie theaters. Audiences can get a close-up reminder why Ledger snagged the Oscar nomination for best supporting actor, and aggrieved fans can show their support. The IMAX version includes six sequences using special cameras, but international theatergoers prone to nausea have a choice of only 29 other screens to avoid the effects. MTV.com lists the rundown of theaters hosting Batman and Joker's return.
2. Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (R). Oscar wouldn't touch this horror-thriller with a gold-plated 10-foot britannium pole. Still, R-ratings aside, searchers 13-44 have developed a thirst for the third in this money-making series, which makes this either the lowbrow group-date movie of the week or the dysfunctional family compromise. Sorry, sweet Kate Beckinsale won't be reprising her toothy role as a bloodsucker in love with a werewolf. Instead, Rhona Mitra plays the female vampire lead in this prequel—popular, yes, but Mitra reaps only half the lookups of her predecessor. People most into underworld clashes? Online searchers from Kentucky, South Carolina, and Oklahoma.
3. Revolutionary Road (R). Best supporting actor, art direction, and costume design were all the Academy was willing to consider for this critically lauded melodrama, and denied Kate Winslet (nominated for Best Actress in "The Reader") a chance to double her odds. The suburban drama, now in wider release, still beckons mostly to women especially from Dallas-Fort Worth, Seattle-Tacoma, and New York City.
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.