The Lycos 50 Blog: News from the Pop Culture Fast Lane
Tuesday, 26 September 2006
Team Aniston or Team Jolie?
Despite the fact that its been almost two years since Brad and Jen split, the Jen/Bran/Angelina/Vince quadrangle is still making news. I admit to having a shameful stack of trashy magazines on my coffee table, including Us Weekly, In Touch, and Star. (What can I say? I love celebrity gossip. And looking at the outfits.) In one given week, two of the magazines will simultaneously proclaim statements like, "VINCE AND JEN: ALTAR-BOUND!" and "VINCE AND JEN: RELATIONSHIP-ENDING FIGHT AT WHOLE FOODS!"
With both Angelina and Jen as Lycos 50 favorites, it made me realize that I truly believe that everyone has chosen a side. Sure, you can claim that you only read Proust and watch foreign films and that your TV is black and white and tucked away in a closet and you only plug it in once a year to watch election results, but still. You are on Team Aniston or Team Jolie. Admit it. Everyone has a favorite, much like as in the Matt/Ben debates of yesteryear.
As for me? Team Aniston. I have no problem with Angelina; she has an adorable family and does excellent humanitarian work. But Jen has always seemed completely relatable to me, like she would be a fun companion with whom to watch "Dawson's Creek" reruns and drink beer. She's had an endearing, lasting friendship with Courteney Cox, and seems to face the same self-esteem issues we all do. Also, she has a great head of hair, and her dad was on "Days of Our Lives." I just like her. I always have. She is my Imaginary Celebrity Friend.
So, despite the fact that I have a great deal of respect for Angelina, its Jen with whom I would eat an entire carton of cookie dough in post-breakup comfort.
This week sees Halloween making its return to the Lycos 50. Perhaps popularity on the Lycos 50 will give us early indication of what costumes will be big this year. I suspect that we will be inundated with Supermans and Jack Sparrows, but will we see little girls trick-or-treating as Paris Hilton or Pam Anderson? Will guys at your Halloween party be decked out in Clay Aiken garb?
MEDIA FRENZY FOR JONBENET RAMSEY CONTINUES ONLINE, WITH SEARCH ACTIVITY JUMPING 2,000 % OVER PAST 72 HOURS
MySpace trumps Pam Anderson to take over top spot with web users
The Lycos 50 for Week Ending Aug. 19, 2006
Notes of Interest:
JonBenet Ramsey (#30) returns to the Lycos 50 this week, following around-the-clock coverage of an apparent break in the 10-year-old murder investigation and the confession of John Mark Karr. News of Karr’s admission to JonBenet’s killing and his subsequent arrest sent web users scouring the internet for more information on Karr and rekindled interest in the Ramsey killing. Search activity began to heat up on Aug. 18 and 19, pushing searches for Ramsey far ahead of web celebs like Angelina Jolie and LindsayLohan. Although search interest has not pushed Ramsey ahead of web darlings Pam Anderson and Paris Hilton, search activity has increased 2,000 percent over the past 72 hours, generating more search queries for JonBenet Ramsey than Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Aniston, Lindsay Lohan and Hilary Duff combined. In fact, searches spiked over the weekend on Aug. 19 and 20, when ironically, most search activity slows down. Searches for JonBenet outnumber searches for her alleged killer nearly 20 to one. 90% of search queries also spelled Ramsey’s name correctly, with only 10 % misspelling Jon Bennet vs. JonBenet, indicating once again how media saturation and attention continues to draw U.S. audiences to this story. The most popular JonBenet Ramsey search related queries include: JonBenet Pictures; JonBenet Autopsy Photos; JonBenet Ramsey official site; Ramsey killing; Ramsey Ransom note; and Ramsey death photos. The most popular John Mark Karr related searches include: John Karr ex-wife; John Mark Karr pictures; and John Mark Karr Thailand.
Other Notes of Interest:
In a huge move to the top spot on the Lycos 50, the social networking site MySpace captured the crown from Pamela Anderson (#2), who had held at number one for nine consecutive weeks. If web search activity is any indication, MySpace users are most curious about free MySpace layouts, which dominate all MySpace-related search queries. Meanwhile, Anderson’s online popularity continues as she pushes to make web users aware of her new site, PamelaPoker.com.
Not Your Daddy's AM Radio: Podcasts up 500%
Podcasts barely missed making the top 50 this week, but saw a noteworthy jump of 500% in search popularity since they were introduced on iTunes last year. Podcasting, a method of multi-media distribution for playback on personal computers and mobile devices like iPods, has become increasingly popular in all fields of interest. Users can download everything from a curator-narrated tour of the Tate Britain Museum, to an informational discourse about alpacas. The increase of searches for Podcasts can be attributed to the popularity of more general or comedic Podcasts, like "Keith and the Girl", a humorous commentary and #1 on the Podcast Alley Directory.
Drop Offs
World Team Tennis 2006 finished in July, and with it, tennis champ Anna Kournikova leaves our list this week, after enjoying 39 weeks on the 50. The file sharing site KaZaA also fell from our list, while similar sites like LimeWire and eMule saw increased popularity.
Pam Anderson continues to dominate web searches on Lycos Pam Anderson's PETA Crusade Keeps Her on Top of List for Second Straight Week
Web users profess passion for Pilates
Ingrid Vandebosch, Katie Cassidy and Star Jones, Big Search Gainers
The Lycos 50 for Week Ending July 1, 2006
WALTHAM, Mass.—July 6, 2006—Lycos, Inc.(www.lycos.com), an entertainment destination for creators and consumers of quality content, today announced the following information from The Lycos 50™, the 50 most popular Internet search results for the week ending July 1, 2006. For a complete list of The Lycos 50™ and for in-depth text of The Lycos 50 Daily Report, go to http://50.lycos.com. Readers of The Lycos 50 can also share their thoughts on Internet trends and pop culture on The Lycos 50 Blog located at https://lycos50.tripod.com/blog/.
Biggest Movers and Shakers over the Past Week Ending July 1, 2006: 1. Independence Day 367 % 2. Fernando Torres 286 % 3. Ingrid Vandebosch 281 % 4. Lucas Neill 274 % 5. Katie Cassidy 266 % 6. Star Jones 264 % 7. Wimbledon 231 % 8. Brandon Routh 229 % 9. Bebo 224 % 10. Kate Bosworth 210 %
Notes of Interest: Pamela Anderson (#1) continues to hold the top position on The Lycos 50 as she continues to make waves during several PETA appearances. On June 28, Pammy and a few of her model friends stripped off all of their clothes and stood naked in the window of Stella McCartney’s boutique, Mayfair, in order to protest the fashion industry’s use of fur as she protested, “I'd rather bare skin than wear skin.” As part of her PETA appearance, Anderson singled out stars and models who have been seen wearing fur, scolding Jennifer Lopez (#21) and Beyonce (#38) for promoting the fur industry by wearing fur in fashion shoots.
Other Notes of Interest: The exercise craze Pilates (#49) makes its debut on this week’s list. Search activity for Pilates is up 200 percent over the past week, generating 95 percent more search interest than yoga. The most popular Pilates-related search queries include: Pilates equipment, Pilates DVDs and Pilates studios.
The Lycos 50™ Top 10 Search Terms for the Week Ending July 1, 2006: 1) Pamela Anderson 2) Paris Hilton 3) MySpace 4) Poker 5) RuneScape 6) Spyware 7) Britney Spears 8) Pokemon 9) NFL Football 10) WWE
Pam Anderson's Naked Pose for PETA Pushes her to top of Search List on LYCOS Web Users continue love affair with American Idol reject Elliott Yamin, who sees biggest jump this week
The Lycos 50 for Week Ending June 24, 2006
WALTHAM, Mass.—June 28, 2006—Lycos, Inc.(www.lycos.com), an entertainment destination for creators and consumers of quality content, today announced the following information from The Lycos 50™, the 50 most popular Internet search results for the week ending June 24, 2006. For a complete list of The Lycos 50™ and for in-depth text of The Lycos 50 Daily Report, go to http://50.lycos.com. Readers of The Lycos 50 can also share their thoughts on Internet trends and pop culture on The Lycos 50 Blog located at https://lycos50.tripod.com/blog/.
Biggest Movers and Shakers over the Past Week Ending June 24, 2006: 1. Used Cars 313 % 2. Anna Benson 233 % 3. LSAT 231 % 4. Wedding Gifts 228 % 5. Wicca 212 % 6. Mary Jo Eustace 209 % 7. Yoga 207 % 8. Rhianna 197 % 9. Rhyme Dictionary 195 % 10. Crystals 193 %
Notes of Interest: Pamela Anderson (#1) and Paris Hilton (#2) have been hanging out at or near the top slot on The Lycos 50 over the past few weeks, engaging in new projects, continuously keeping them in the news. Anderson’s latest crusades involve raising publicity for HIV Testing Day (June 27), as well as preparing to strip naked with a group of other models in the window of Stella McCartney’s London boutique as part of an anti-fur demonstration for PETA. Meanwhile, Paris is gearing up for the release of her new album, which is due later this summer. The first single, “Stars are Blind” was released last week, and is currently riding high on the charts. The song is in the iTunes Music Store’s Top 10 most downloaded chart and it was the weekend’s most-requested song on a number of Top 40 radio stations across the country. And it appears web users just can't get enough of “American Idol” reject Elliott Yamin (#12) who saw the biggest jump this week, up from number 21 last week.
Other Notes of Interest: The biggest sporting event in the world is still hanging tough on this week’s Lycos 50, with World Cup coming in at number 8 this week. Soccer is down a few points at number 21, but newcomer FIFA enters the 50 at number 42. FIFA -- the F?d?ration Internationale de Football Association -- is the world governing body for the sport. Does the U.S. audience really care about World Cup? Check out a totally irreverent look at World Cup with "Balls," produced in conjunction with Emerson College, only on Lycos TV, available at http://worldcup.lycos.com. Meanwhile, as the animated Pixar feature “Cars” speeds straight up to the number 18 slot on this week’s Lycos 50, the new Adam Sandler comedy “Click,” also makes its first-ever appearance on this week’s list at number 39. And although it hasn't managed to crack The Lycos 50 just yet, the new "Superman Returns" is causing a big stir online, with search activity up 40 percent over the past week.
The Lycos 50™ Top 10 Search Terms for the Week Ending June 24, 2006: 1) Pamela Anderson 2) Paris Hilton 3) RuneScape 4) Poker 5) MySpace 6) Spyware 7) Pokemon 8) World Cup 9) Britney Spears 10) Naruto
Balls, Balls, Balls
Live from Emerson College in Boston, it's BALLS! If you haven't seen it yet, you have to check out BALLS, now airing daily on Lycos TV at http://worldcup.lycos.com. Poking some fun, Balls gives you an irreverent look at why Americans just don't seem to care about World Cup. The show is produced, directed and written by TV students at Emerson. It looks and sounds great!
American Idol Reject Elliott, More Popular Than Winner Taylor Hicks With Web Users
World Cup Scores Big Jumping into Top 10; American Idol Reject Elliott Yamin, 667% More Popular Online Than Winner Taylor Hicks
Pixar Film Cars Races Up Search Logs; File-Sharing Protocol BitTorrent makes first-ever appearance
The Lycos 50 for Week Ending June 17, 2006
WALTHAM, Mass.—June 21, 2006—Lycos, Inc.(www.lycos.com), an entertainment destination for creators and consumers of quality content, today announced the following information from The Lycos 50™, the 50 most popular Internet search results for the week ending June 17, 2006. For a complete list of The Lycos 50™ and for in-depth text of The Lycos 50 Daily Report, go to http://50.lycos.com. Readers of The Lycos 50 can also share their thoughts on Internet trends and pop culture on The Lycos 50 Blog located at https://lycos50.tripod.com/blog/.
Biggest Movers and Shakers over the Past Week Ending June 17, 2006: 1. Taxes 343 % 2. Hard Drive Recovery 328 % 3. Auto Classified 234 % 4. Day Trading 222 % 5. Father’s Day 211 % 6. Ninel Conde 202 % 7. Tamara Hoover 199 % 8. Bluetooth 185 % 9. Sienna Miller 179 % 10. Alice Braga 178 %
Notes of Interest: Interest in the 2006 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament has driven World Cup (#9) into The Lycos 50 top 10, up 59 percent over the past week. For an entertaining first-hand look at the mayhem surrounding this year’s World Cup in Germany, check out all the craziness and none of the scores with over-the-top video on Lycos TV at http://worldcup.lycos.com. Also scoring big online is American Idol reject Elliott Yamin (#21), who makes an impressive debut on this week’s Lycos 50, generating 667 percent more online interest than winner Taylor Hicks, who actually drops off this week’s list.
Other Notes of Interest:Taxes (#5) make the biggest jump this week, climbing from number 34 last week, with web users primarily searching for information about their rebate checks, extensions and returns. One of the new terms also debuting on The Lycos 50 is BitTorrent (#45). The file sharing protocol has become all the rage on the net ever since BitTorrent emerged as the most efficient method of sharing large volumes of data between hundreds of computers.
The Lycos 50™ Top 10 Search Terms for the Week Ending June 17, 2006: 1) Poker 2) Pamela Anderson 3) Paris Hilton 4) RuneScape 5) Taxes 6) Britney Spears 7) Spyware 8) MySpace 9) World Cup 10) Pokemon
Wacky World Cup Coverage...all the Mayhem, None of the Scores
Forget about the official FIFA sites...check out what Lycos is doing to give you an inside look at all the craziness surrounding World Cup at http://worldcup.lycos.com.
Lycos has embedded videographers on the ground in Germany giving us a look at all the action off the field.
This week's hottest web search trends with The Lycos 50 Sports Dominate this Week’s List of most Popular Search Terms
Pamela Rogers Turner, Plasma TV, Allegra Kent, Big Search Gainers
The Lycos 50 for Week Ending June 3, 2006
WALTHAM, Mass.—June 7, 2006—Lycos, Inc.(www.lycos.com), an entertainment destination for creators and consumers of quality content, today announced the following information from The Lycos 50™, the 50 most popular Internet search results for the week ending June 3, 2006. For a complete list of The Lycos 50™ and for in-depth text of The Lycos 50 Daily Report, go to http://50.lycos.com. Readers of The Lycos 50 can also share their thoughts on Internet trends and pop culture on The Lycos 50 Blog located at https://lycos50.tripod.com/blog/.
Biggest Movers and Shakers over the Past Week Ending June 3, 2006: 1. Kentucky Derby 384% 2. Online Games 332% 3. Resumes 314% 4. Sunglasses 293% 5. Pamela Rogers Turner 289% 6. Wedding Gifts 271% 7. Plasma TV 270% 8. Tax Rebate 262% 9. Allegra Kent 250% 10. Cigars 240%
Notes of Interest: Sports dominate this week’s top 10 list, with NBA Basketball (#1) knocking top-seated Poker (#6) out of the number one spot. Golf (#7) and NFL Football (#8) also jump into the top 10 list of search terms with Soccer and Baseball not far behind, holding the number 14 and 15 spots respectively. Interesting, although it took place in mid-May, the Kentucky Derby was one of this week’s biggest movers and shakers, up 384 percent in search activity, due mostly to search interest for Barbaro who suffered a shattered leg shortly after the start of the Preakness Stakes.
Other Notes of Interest:Making his debut this week is American Idol winner Taylor Hicks (#31), whose recent victory over second placed Katharine McPhee drives the Soul Patrol onto The Lycos 50 for the first time ever. And while Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie (#37) continue to make headlines offline, it’s the former ex-Mrs. Pitt, Jennifer Aniston (#22) who re-enters this week’s list, generating more interest online than “Brangenlina.”
The Lycos 50™ Top 10 Search Terms for the Week Ending June 3, 2006: 1) NBA Basketball 6) Poker 2) MySpace 7) Golf 3) RuneScape 8) NFL Football 4) Paris Hilton 9) Pokemon 5) Pamela Anderson 10) Britney Spears
This week's hottest search terms and ones to watch
***MEDIA ALERT***
Grey's Anatomy, Spyware, Make First-Ever Appearances on List
Pai Gow Poker, CD Labels, Wolverine Boots, Big Search Gainers
The Lycos 50 for Week Ending May 20, 2006
WALTHAM, Mass.—May 25, 2006—Lycos, Inc.(www.lycos.com), a media destination for creators and consumers of quality content, today announced the following information from The Lycos 50™, the 50 most popular Internet search results for the week ending May 20, 2006. For a complete list of The Lycos 50™ and for in-depth text of The Lycos 50 Daily Report, go to http://50.lycos.com. Readers of The Lycos 50 can also share their thoughts on Internet trends and pop culture on The Lycos 50 Blog located at https://lycos50.tripod.com/blog/.
Biggest Movers and Shakers over the Past Week Ending May 20, 2006: 1. CD Labels 224% 2. Spyware 210% 3. Diamond Bracelets 191% 4. LCD TV 189% 5. Red Hat Linux 187% 6. Cancun 178% 7. Used Cars 169% 8. Wolverine Boots 166% 9. Futurama 154% 10. Pai Gow Poker 145%
Notes of Interest: ABC’s hot TV show, Grey’s Anatomy (#30) makes its first-ever appearance on this week’s Lycos 50. Interestingly, while search activity indicates web users are crazy about the show, they don’t know how to spell it, as search queries for Gray’s Anatomy outnumber searches for Grey’s Anatomy nearly two to one. The other new face this week is Spyware (#44), making its debut on this week’s list, with search activity jumping 210 percent. Web users appear to be far more concerned with detecting and eliminating spyware than anything else, as searches for spyware removal, spyware blocker, and anti-spyware were responsible for the surge in popularity.
Other Notes of Interest:Search queries for Wolverine Boots have stepped up 166 percent during the past week. Not to be confused with Wolverine, the X-Men mutant, this footwear is made by Wolverine World Wide in Rockford, Michigan. The sudden surge in interest in these rugged work boots might be a clue that summer job season is fast approaching. Meanwhile, Pai Gow Poker, or double-hand poker, appears to be the hottest poker craze, up 145 percent this week.
The Lycos 50™ Top 10 Search Terms for the Week Ending May 20, 2006: 1) Paris Hilton 6) LimeWire 2) Poker 7) Mother’s Day 3) RuneScape 8) Britney Spears 4) MySpace 9) Pokemon 5) Pamela Anderson 10) Golf
About Lycos, Inc. Lycos, Inc. (www.lycos.com) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Daum Communications Corp., a leading Internet portal and e-commerce destination in Korea with a growing presence throughout the Asian markets. Lycos, Inc. creates and operates search, community and technology lifestyle sites including Lycos.com, Hotbot.com, Wired.com, Tripod.com and Angelfire.com. Other Lycos products and sites include Lycos Mail, Lycos Games, Lycos Planet, Lycos Phone and GetRelevant. Lycos was acquired by Korean Daum Communications Corp. in October 2004 and has its U.S. headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts. Daum Communications Corp. is traded on the KOSDAQ: 035720, www.daum.net.
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