the buzz log
July 2008 Buzz Roundup
July is supposed to be about barbecues, vacations, and leisure. Instead, high gas prices meant people were stuck at home (if they weren't foreclosed, that is), focusing on money savings, dark knights, and celebrity babies. Here are a few items that blew through Search this month.
Tossing Oil and Money into the Wind
So for an 80-year-old guy, oilman T. Boone Pickens's windy talk about energy resources moved quickly (+67,360%) up the Search charts. His Pickens Plan aims to wean America off foreign oil, and suckle on domestic crude and wind instead.
Change may or may not be in the air, but energy costs and the overall economy plagued July searches. We logged spikes on everything from "energy savings" and "how high will gas prices climb" to "fdic insurance" and "credit card debt consolidation." Will Pickens be a dark knight or the joker? Stay tuned.
Baby Boom
History will mark these moments: tea-party independence, men on the moon, and the twins of actors Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. The paparazzi-fueled saga dragged out the gestation period to soap opera lengths, but Jolie finally delivered, literally, fraternal twins (as per the latest celebrity trend).
The double coming resulted in a Jolie family reunion and a huge charity benefit, which rumors so far point to People magazine as the main $10-$15 mil contributor. While the Jolie-Pitt offspring overshadowed newborns from Nicole Kidman/Keith Urban and Matthew McConaughey/Camila Alves, searches went on overload for baby photos of Thomas "Pregnant Man" Beatie's little girl. Price to publish photos of a medical miracle? A rumored steal of $300K.
Other searches that buzzed in July...
- Dame Diana Rigg (+17,157%), who immortalized Mrs. Peel in the 1960s British camp spy series, turned 70 this month.
- Space Agency NASA (+25%) marked its mid-century of existence. Just in time, Dr. Edgar Mitchell—man number six on the moon—said aliens indeed existed.
- Cancer claimed two well-known personalities this month: Carnegie-Mellon professor Randy Pausch's passing once again fueled searches for his lecture (see chart). Former journalist and White House press secretary Tony Snow lost to a second bout of colon cancer.
- As expected, "dark knight" cast its bat shadow, with Heath Ledger getting the last laugh as the Joker... and as "keith ledger," perhaps the most popular misspelling of the month.
Fastest Movers in July Searches
1. Thomas Beatie Baby Photos (+infinity). See above. 2. T. Boone Pickens (+67,360%). See above.
3. Daisy Lowe (35,881%). Supermodel dating producer Mark Ronson, brother to DJ Samantha Ronson who's linked to Lindsay Lohan. Get all that?
4. Abigail Adams. Wife of 2nd U.S. president John Adams, mom to number 6 John Quincy Adams, and subject of an HBO miniseries.
5. Riyo Mori (+22,139%). The outgoing Miss Universe gave up her crown to Miss Venezuela.
6. American Teen (+21,799%). The Sundance Festival documentary favorite keeps it real, and opens in some theaters this Friday.
7. William Sisters (+21,552%). Venus finally beat younger Serena in a Wimbledon match-up, and they teamed up to win doubles.
8. James Haven (+19,986%). See above.
9. Dara Torres Maxim. (19,923%). Aiming for Olympics number five, the gold medalist's element is water, but for fans it's glossy paper.
10. Randy Pausch, the Last Lecture Video (+19,748%). See above.
Filed under: NASA, Celebrities, Monthly Wrapup, Recaps, Gas Prices, Space, Money, Babies, Wimbledon, Pageants, Wrap Up
Miss Teen South Carolina: Web Sensation!
Miss Teen Colorado walked away the crown of Miss Teen USA last week, but Miss Teen South Carolina emerged as the true champ thanks to the Web. Video clips of Palmetto State pageant contestant Lauren Caitlin Upton attempting to answer a question about world geography rocketed all over the Internet.
Searches on "miss teen south carolina" jumped 831% as "U.S. Americans" watched the awkward moment over and over. Her convoluted response also spurred queries on "miss teen south carolina video," "miss teen," and "miss teen usa south carolina."
As for the befuddled 18-year-old, we also saw surges on "lauren caitlin upton" (+515%) and "caitlin upton" (+227%). Young Ms. Upton dusted herself off and parlayed her Web fame into an appearance on the Today show. She also might have single-handedly revived interest in geography—queries on "world geography" (+42%) and "geography" (+36%) both moved up the charts. All in all, not bad for a third-runner-up.
Filed under: Pageants
Babes of the Universe
It's time for a bevy of beauties to storm the Search box. The babes of the known universe have descended on Mexico City to decide the next Miss Universe. Searches on the pageant are up 54% over the past seven days, and queries on "miss universe 2007 contestants" and "miss universe 2007 candidates pictures" brightened the Buzz.
Out of the 77 marvelous misses who'll compete for the crown, searches on "miss philippines," "miss mexico," and "miss india" currently lead the pack. Buzz on Rachel Smith, the current Miss USA, is up 150% and related searches on "rachel smith miss usa" and "rachel smith photos" are creeping up the charts.
Other contestants who've made a mark in Search include Miss Brazil Natalia Guimaraes (+123%), Miss Mexico Rosa Maria Ojeda (+160%), and Miss Uruguay Giannina Silva (+65%). Who'll be watching these gorgeous gals strut their stuff for the judges? Well, guys 25-44 account for one-third of Miss Universe searches, but we bet they're more interested in finding pics of the girls online than in watching the actual broadcast.
Filed under: Pageants, Miss Universe
Respect the Sash
The title "Miss America" conjures up visions of gracious and beautiful young women. They wish for world peace, but don't go around fighting crime... or do they? That old-fashioned image of the passive pageant winner is officially extinct thanks to the tough actions of two satin-gloved avengers.
The current Miss America, Lauren Nelson, assisted police in busting sexual predators. While the beauty queen didn't handcuff the perverts herself, she did "go undercover," chatting with the alleged criminals online and over the phone. Not surprisingly, searches on Nelson have since skyrocketed 1,184%. Those numbers are sure to jump even higher once the segment airs on "America's Most Wanted."
Even more impressive were the actions taken by Miss America 1944, Venus Ramey. After spotting a would-be thief on her farm, the 82-year-old badass shot out the getaway car's tires, flagged down a passing motorist, got help from police, and saw her buzz jump an astounding 3,371%. After things cooled down, the world-weary gunslinger had this to say: "I'm trying to live a quiet, peaceful life and stay out of trouble." Beauty, bravery, and a good head on her shoulders—no wonder she was Miss America.
Filed under: Miss America, Crime, Pageants
Wrapping Up the Universe
Miss Universe was our top search over the weekend, and the pageant more than lived up to advance buzz. Searches on the contestants, pictures of the contestants, and even Donald Trump all spiked after the crown was awarded in Hollywood.
Although Miss USA Tara Conner stood out from the rest of the lovely ladies in Search, buzz wasn't enough to help her escape a fifth-place finish. Queries on Miss Japan Kurara Chibana jumped 236% after she snagged the runner-up spot. Related searches on "miss japan," "miss universe japan," and "kurara chibana pics" all snapped to attention after the Asian beauty displayed her samurai skills in the cheese-tastic opening number.
As for the winner, Miss Puerto Rico didn't grab any pre-pageant buzz. But after the gorgeous 18-year-old teetered down the runway wearing the coveted crown, searches took off. Queries on "zuleyka rivera mendoza," "zuleyka rivera," and "miss puerto rico 2006" all went from zero into the thousands after her victory. And in a buzz-worthy twist, the newly anointed Miss Universe fainted after a post-pageant news conference. A second wave of searches on "miss universe faints" and "miss universe fainting pictures" ensured maximum visibility in the Buzz for a pageant that scored highly with Search judges.
Before we abdicate our crown, here are a few final searches cracking the Buzz after the pageant...
Filed under: Pageants, Miss Universe
Universal Appeal
This weekend in Hollywood, one lucky gal will strut down the runway and into the warm embrace of the Trump Organization. After donning the much-sought after Miss Universe tiara and petting The Donald's mane, she'll go on to a lifetime of appearances at Trump ribbon-cutting ceremonies the world over. Ah, what a life.
Searches on Miss Universe are trending up as pictures of the comely contestants continue to make their way around the Web. The volume of queries on the pageant has doubled, and it's riding a wave of buzz with related searches like "miss universe 2006 contestants," "miss universe 2006 contestant pictures," and "miss universe 2006 favorite candidates" all on the rise. With 86 hotties to choose from, the male portion of the population is sure to watch raptly. In fact, over 70% of all Miss Universe queries are coming from men who just can't get enough of the contestants.
Miss USA Tara Conner made a timely appearance on Bravo's "Project Runway," and searches on the blonde beauty from Kentucky jumped 1,279% this week. Miss Brazil Rafaela Zanella and the curvy cutie from Poland, Francys Sudnicka, are also winning over the Buzz audience.
The competition is broken down into three portions—swimsuit, evening gown, and interview—but buzz on the show will be judged by one simple factor—hotness of the babes. With that in mind, here are a few final searches to keep an eye on...
Filed under: Pageants, Miss Universe
top movers
| Rank | Subject | 1-Day Move |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lin Chi Ling | Breakout! |
| 2 | Gloria Diaz | Breakout! |
| 3 | Freida Pinto | 27459% |
| 4 | Gloria Estefan | 9975% |
| 5 | Gloria Velez | 6463% |
| 6 | Gloria Trevi | 3878% |
| 7 | Faith Hill | 2081% |
| 8 | 60 Minutes | 1114% |
| 9 | Alexis Denisof | 994% |
| 10 | Lee Ann Womack | 987% |
top leaders
| Rank | Subject | Move | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NFL | +464 | 575 |
| 2 | Britney Spears | +194 | 316 |
| 3 | Hi-5 | -11 | 244 |
| 4 | Black Friday | +23 | 212 |
| 5 | Freida Pinto | +198 | 199 |
| 6 | UFC | -24 | 194 |
| 7 | Club Penguin | -30 | 161 |
| 8 | Gloria Estefan | +149 | 150 |
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.