It was a bittersweet week in the Twitterverse. Some of us cheered for our entertainment and sports heroes while others lamented the loss of some notable public figures.
Soccer (football) took the top trend for yet another week thanks in part to a controversial appointment to the Newcastle United Football Club. Chileans tweeted feverishly about their biggest telethon, landing the media event in the number two slot. And talk of the NBA was hot as LeBron James faced his former Cleveland Cavaliers teammates on the court. Basketball chatter hit the number three mark.
Deaths this week include Elizabeth Edwards, who lost her battle to cancer at age 61. Her name hit the list at number four as people tweeted their condolences. And two legendary sports figures — Joseph Don Meredith of the NFL and Ron Santo of MLB — also passed away this week, landing at numbers six and seven respectively.
Conspicuously absent from the chart is the ongoing Wikileaks saga and the controversies over “Cablegate.” Despite seeing plenty of Twitter chatter on the topic, we have not seen Wikileaks trending, and were prompted to inquire about the matter. Twitter responded publicly, explaining that its trend algorithm highlights topics that are new and intense, and not necessarily the most popular by volume. Because the data below is pulled from Twitter’s API, the chart reflects this approach to trending topics.
For the complete picture, check out the chart below, compiled by our friends over at What The Trend. Because this is a topical list, hashtag memes and games have been omitted from the chart.
You can check past Twitter trends in our Top Twitter Topics section as well as read more about this past week’s trends on What The Trend.
Top Twitter Trends This Week: 12/4 – 12/10
Rank | Topic | Intensity | Description |
#1 | Soccer/Football | 3 | Top Trends centered around the somewhat unpopular appointment of Alan Pardew as manager of the Newcastle United Football Club. He is not a popular choice with many Newcastle supporters. The trends also recognized Irfan Bachdim, a striker for the Indonesian national football team, who was one of the scorers in the victorious 6-0 match against Laos on December 4. |
#2 | Teletón 2010 (TV Show) | 2 | A charity event held almost every year in Chile since 1978, produced and broadcast by all television channels in the country and involving all print media and radio. Proceeds from the event, usually held the last weekend of November or the first weekend of December, are used for the construction and maintenance of the Children’s Rehabilitation Institute. |
#3 | NBA | 2 | Shannon Brown of the LA Lakers celebrated his 25th birthday, and LeBron James’ return to play against his former teammates from the Cleveland Cavaliers all made top news. |
#4 | Elizabeth Edwards | 1 | Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of John Edwards, has lost her battle with cancer at the age of 61. The Westboro Baptist Church has stated they will picket her funeral. |
#5 | Justin Bieber | 1 | Justin Bieber fans from Venezuela show their love for him, hoping he’ll bring his concert tour to their country. |
#6 | NFL | 1 | Joseph Don "Dandy Don" Meredith (April 10, 1938 – December 5, 2010) was an American football quarterback in the National Football League who played 9 full seasons in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys, and a football commentator and actor. He passed away this week. Other mentions were Michael Vick, Danny Woodhead, and Albert Haynesworth. |
#7 | MLB | 1 | Cubs player, broadcaster, and legend, Ron Santo has passed away. Adrian Gonzales, former MLB first baseman for the San Diego Padres, was traded to the Boston Red Sox, and four-time All-Star Carl Crawford signed with the Red Sox for a seven-year contract worth $142 million. |
#8 | Pearl Harbor | 1 | This week saw the 69th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor, the impetus that brought the U.S. into World War II. |
#9 | Golden Disk Awards (TV Show) | 1 | The 25th Golden Disk Awards was held on December 9 at the Hwajeong Gym in Koryeo University and is the biggest award show in Korean Entertainment. SNSD is the first girl group to ever win a Disk Daesang. Super Junior lost in the competition for the Grand Prize. |
#10 | TGIF | 1 | It’s the start of the week or the end of the week, depending on your calendar. TGIF = "Thank God It’s Friday." |
Image courtesy of iStockphoto, ricardoinfante
Reviews: Twitter, Wikileaks, iStockphoto, justin bieber
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