the buzz log
October 2009 Buzz: Halloween Haunts, Flyboys and Cheating Hearts
A deceptive autumn lull settled on the domestic scene, partly as people tried to dodge H1N1. Amidst all the handwashing, though, tumult remained over health care discussions, Afghanistan policy, and an exciting but perplexing Nobel Peace Prize honor bestowed on a freshman president. Besides headlines and Halloween, the Buzz had time to listen to creepy confessions and flights of fancy. Below, just a bit of the stories—and searches—on Web overdrive.
The Other Kind of Swine
The tale of cheating men is as old as man itself, but yet their shenanigans never fail to rivet...especially when it involves David Letterman, who has taken jabs over the decades at cheaters, and attempted blackmail by a CBS "48 Hours" producer. The host made a "creepy" confession on his show and another apology to offended females this year. The late-night drama made the sex-addiction confession by fired ESPN baseball analyst Steve Phillips seem tame, although he got the boot for canoodling with a 22-year-old production assistant (one of many events that helped end his 19-year-old marriage). Philips entered sex rehab. At this rate, someone might want to start a mobile clinic.
Frolicking Flyboys
Eyes turned to the skies when it seemed an amateur storm chaser's son had accidentally taken off in a helium ballon. The media frenzy was for naught, as the now ironically named Falcon Heene had hid in the rafters, and the whole episode turned out to be a really bad reality-TV audition. No hoax but questions remain over how Northwest Flight 188 pilots overshot their destination by 150 miles and remained incommunicado for 75+ minutes. The cockpit blamed "heated" scheduling discussions and laptop distractions. The FAA called their excuses "a frolic" and suspended them. Passengers can still believe in the skies: Hudson River hero Captain Chesley Sullenberger published his biography this month.
Afghan Course
In the long conflict, October has proven the deadliest for US forces in Afghanistan. General Stanley A. McChrystal has argued for more manpower and, after much consultation with military commanders and civilian advisers, the White House will lay out "broad strategic guidelines" until the Nov. 7 election runoff between President Hamid Karzai and challenger Abdullah Abudullah...even if the challenger boycotts. Reports point to a compromise which follows American history, as Newsweek details in a look back at troop requests since the Revolutionary War.
|
Search Terms with the Biggest Percentage Changes
|
Biggest Search Terms
|
Filed under: Reality TV, Celebrities, Monthly Wrapup, Hoaxes, Military, Halloween, War, Nobel Prize, Barack Obama, David Letterman, Afghanistan, Wrap Up
August 2009 Buzz
The hot days of August became days of mourning for political leaders (Cory Aquino, Kim Dae-Jung, Ted Kennedy). Health conversations took on an unhealthy tone, and reality TV dominated real-life crime headlines. Below, a look at searches and buzzy stories on Yahoo! this month.
The Last Days of Camelot
While June's celebrity departures seemed a turning point for Generation X, the loss of two political paladins marked an era's passing. The legacy of America's most well-known political family came under review twice with the deaths of Eunice Kennedy Shriver, who founded the Special Olympics, and brother Edward Kennedy. Dogged by the Chappaquidick incident, the Massachusetts senator abandoned presidential ambition but still shaped everyday American life by helping to create nearly 1,000 laws on health, civil rights, disability, immigration, education, and more.
Health Check-Up's Negative Results
High decibel levels and superheated rhetoric complicated the already unwieldy mission to reform health care. Rifle-toting protesters and outright falsehoods made town-hall meetings look like a Jerry Springer episode. Still, online outreach—including details from the White House—and research into "obama health plan details" persisted. Meanwhile, more immediate health concerns pushed up queries for flu shots.
Reality Checks
The normally escapist fare of reality TV took an awful turn with a murder-suicide. The VH1 series "Megan Wants a Millionaire" had finished filming and aired only two episodes when news came out that a finalist, Ryan Jenkins, had allegedly killed his wife and swimsuit model, Jasmine Fiore. His suicide three days later led VH1 to cancel that show, as well as celebreality show "I Love Money 3," which Jenkins had competed and won.
Search Terms with the Biggest Percentage Changes
| Biggest Search Terms |
Filed under: Health, Reality TV, Politics, Monthly Wrapup, Crime, Recaps, Death, Wrap Up
Wigged Out over Kate Gosselin
Through the tears, heartache, Octomom spats, and hosting gigs, one thing has remained a constant in Kate Gosselin's life: her hair.
As rubberneckers gathered at the wreck of a reality-TV marriage, ladies the world over wondered how to get their locks cut like hers. When Gosselin was busy pounding out the dents in her perfect-mom image, lookups on Yahoo! for "kate gosselin hair" soared past fashionistas like Rihanna or Victoria Beckham. US Magazine, in an abuse of Photoshop, even re-imagined a world where celebrities sported the defiant, in-your-face pixie bob.
Well, for those who don't have what it takes to make that cut, fake it. Her spikes are, well, spiking online. Searches for "kate gosselin wigs" have outstripped queries for "mullet wigs" and "lady gaga wigs." However, they still trail "beehive wigs," so favored by the likes of Lady Gaga and Amy Winehouse.
US magazine once again has been leading the charge for Gosselin's can-do-her-'do attitude: It predicted earlier this month that she would be this Halloween's Sarah Palin craze, and the constant Search trickle might just bear them out.
But, if you want to stand out from all those other Gosselin wannabes, here's a style tip: Snip some flouncy spikes out of a blonde beehive, for that outraaaageous commando-mom look. Don't forget the oversized hanky, for those vulnerable moments.
Filed under: TV, Reality TV
Is Art the New Black? Reality Show for Artists
Stand back, "Project Runway." Move over "Top Chef." There's a new group in town hungering for 15 minutes of fame on reality TV: Aspiring artists. Wait, artists? Hey, you never know: Maybe the next Warhol or Pollock would wait in line, as hundreds of hopefuls have been doing, for a chance to sell out on a reality competition.
The as-yet-untitled show is being produced by fashion icon Sarah Jessica Parker, who has turned her critical eye from high fashion to high art. The series will air on Bravo, and will follow the similar elimination challenges that viewers have come to expect from reality competitions involving ambitious designers and wannabe chefs.
The winner will be whittled down from 13, and will receive a gallery show, cash, and a national tour. Art fans, you can start lining up now.
Although all the judges have yet to be named, one who has signed on is Simon de Pury, who heads an international auction house. Could this be the art world's answer to Tim Gunn? The newest castmember told the New York Times the show would pull the art world from its "hermetic inapproachability." Hmmm. Not exactly "Make it work."
No word yet on whether SJP will appear on the show—which is starting to sound as exciting as watching paint dry.
Filed under: Reality TV
Jon Gosselin’s Bachelor Pad
Nothing quite says "I'm not with Kate Plus 8" than purchasing a two-bedroom apartment in cramped, crowded New York City.
The other parental half of the hit reality show "Jon and Kate Plus 8," which follows a family with eight kids, has flown the coop. Since J and K announced their split (on TV, natch), daddy dearest seems to have recovered quite well, showing up in France with a 22-year-old girlfriend, Hailey Glassman. And now this: a deluxe pad on the Upper West Side. (We're guessing there are not four sets of bunk beds.)
After the report from People, searches on the location of Gosselin's new crib immediately took off. The blog Just Jared helpfully maps out the high-rise as located on the Northwest corner of Broadway at 72nd Street.
The luxe lair—estimates are that the condo came to around $1 million—is a "non-penthouse." Still, the building comes tricked out with a gym, a hot tub, a pool, a 24-hour doorman, and a concierge. Oh, and don't think he forgot the kids: There's also a small playroom.
Maybe the divorced dad will pay for his pad with a spinoff show. He can call it "Two-Bedroom Apartment for One."
Filed under: Reality TV
top movers
| Rank | Subject | 1-Day Move |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Worst Airports For Delays 2009 | Breakout! |
| 2 | How To Survive A Recession | Breakout! |
| 3 | Ice Cream Calorie Counter | Breakout! |
| 4 | Jayson Williams | Breakout! |
| 5 | Alexandra Kerry | Breakout! |
| 6 | Chaz Bono | 10707% |
| 7 | Kelly Osbourne | 3298% |
| 8 | Jennifer Hudson | 3218% |
| 9 | Nicole Richie | 2075% |
| 10 | Thierry Henry | 1125% |
top leaders
| Rank | Subject | Move | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Black Friday | +413 | 1016 |
| 2 | Elizabeth Lambert | -677 | 263 |
| 3 | NFL | +66 | 235 |
| 4 | New Moon | +74 | 213 |
| 5 | Bing | +83 | 209 |
| 6 | Kelly Osbourne | +193 | 199 |
| 7 | Hulu | +7 | 139 |
| 8 | Nicole Richie | +124 | 130 |
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.