POLITICS TOOK a back seat to Manny Pacquiao this year as the champion boxer was adjudged to be the fastest rising newsmaker for 2008 based on a Google analysis of Filipinos? search preferences.
The Internet giant on Wednesday released its annual Zeitgeist (German for “spirit of the times”) lists for the country which showed the terms “lyrics”, “friendster”, and “you” as the top terms Filipinos searched for on the web this year.
But based on what Google said were the “fastest rising” searches, Mr. Pacquiao attracted the most interest, taking the top four spots in a list of ten. In fifth was broadcaster Ces Drilon, who was kidnapped by bandits, followed by the bloody RCBC bank robbery and President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo?s State of the Nation Address.
The 10 fastest rising celebrities, meanwhile, were YouTube singing sensations Charice Pempengco and Arnel Pineda (who now fronts the rock band Journey), with actress Marian Rivera bringing up the rear.
Google also noted “surging interest” in classical Filipino literature, with seven out of the ten fastest rising Filipino-related search terms related to that field. Topping the list was “Florante at Laura” and “ibong Adarna”, with “Noli me Tangere” and “El Filibusterismo” in fourth and fifth, respectively.
The economic downturn was also described as “top of mind” for users in the Philippines. Google said there were large increases in the number of searches for “sale” (up 36%), “tipid” (also up 36%), and “free” (up 10%.
“Terms like ?recession? (2,600% increase) and ?financial crisis? (333% increase) also saw significant spikes in search volume when the global markets were falling in September and October,” Google said in a statement.
