Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
After several weeks of decreasing coverage, the Gulf oil saga spiked upward last week amid news of possible success in stopping the flow. Coverage of a bill to regulate the financial sector, infighting among Democrats, violence and progress in Afghanistan and the death of a baseball mogul rounded out the roster of top stories.
An Internet prank aimed at 16-year-old pop star Justin Bieber provided amusement for many in the social media world last week. Social media also debated several legal issues ranging from immigration to the digital economy. And on YouTube, CNN host Anderson Cooper’s commentary on the lack of media access to the oil spill cleanup drew the most hits.
Civil liberties were the hot topics across social media last week. Bloggers debated the Supreme Court decision on gun ownership and Finland’s law making Internet access a legal right. Twitter drew attention to the discovery of a privacy leak on the website Foursquare. On YouTube, a video purportedly showing oily rain in the Gulf region led to controversy.
Damage control in Washington overtook damage control in the Gulf of Mexico as the BP oil spill generated its biggest week of media coverage since the April 20 rig explosion that triggered the disaster. The narrative was driven, in large part, by a president who spoke to the nation and an oil executive who took a pounding from Congress.
The controversy surrounding General McChrystal – and especially Obama’s role in the matter – commanded attention on blogs and Twitter last week. Twitter users also shared news of a landmark copyright ruling portrayed as a victory for online freedom. And on YouTube, a clip of a dancing baby led to a vibrant conversation over authenticity.
The Gulf of Mexico oil spill, a fixture in the headlines for over a month, narrowly edged some attention-grabbing election results as the top story last week. The legislative effort to regulate Wall Street drove economic coverage and two international stories rounded out the roster of top subjects.
The Pew Forum’s Alan Cooperman and Greg Smith, along with Boston University professor and author Stephen Prothero and Krista Tippett of American Public Media, explore key findings from a new Pew Forum survey on how much Americans know about religion as part of a panel discussion at a national symposium on religious literacy in Washington, […]