Britney Spears, Paris Hilton Most Googled

BetaNews ^ | December 23, 2004 | Ed Oswald

[Cicero]

Britney Spears, Paris Hilton Most Googled

By Ed Oswald, BetaNews

December 23, 2004, 3:08 PM

Pop star Britney Spears and actress and hotel fortune heiress Paris Hilton were the two most popular queries in 2004, according to Google's Zeitgeist which was released Thursday. The term "zeitgeist" is German in origin, and means "the general intellectual, moral, and cultural climate of an era" according to Webster's Dictionary.

Google took a broad range of topics in its survey, ranging from technology to types of clothing. Some notable popular queries:

- Movie star Orlando Bloom was the most frequently queried male celebrity, with rapper Eminem in second;

- The Apple's iPod was the top electronics query;

- Microsoft's Tablet PC was the most frequently searched for computer good;

- Auction site eBay topped Wal-Mart and amazon.com as the most popular brand name;

- P2P software Kazaa came in second to "wallpaper" as the most frequently searched for tech item.

Google said that throughout the year it searches through its logs to find interesting trends in what their users are searching for. The Zeitgeist is based on "the millions of searches conducted on Google over a given period of time - weekly, monthly, and annually." The full Zeitgeist can be found on Google's Web site.

[Cicero]

Just in case you were wondering what the average American has been most tightly focused on during this past election year. (Hint: It's not George Bush, John Kerry, or the War on Terror.)

[BenLurkin]

"Googled" or "ogled"?

[JoJo Gunn]

Apparently Newton Minow's comment on TV being a vast wasteland also applies to the internet.

[ko_kyi]

"Britney Spears, Paris Hilton Most Googled"


So that's what they call it now?

[Cicero]

The burning question of Britney's breast size (warning: no children or squeamish, please):

http://www.liquidgeneration.com/poptoons/britneys_breasts.asp

[My2Cents]

Instead of "Zeitgeist," Google should have called it's new engine "List of Tomorrow's Top Has-Beens."

[kevkrom]

Did they include image searches, or just the standard text search?

[KarlInOhio]

I was just trying to figure out how transistors worked. Honest.

Britney's Guide to Semiconductor Physics

[Cicero]

I would imagine it's google searches using any combination of words including Britney Spears or Paris Hilton.

Plus all those of us who turn that feature off in Preferences don't get reported back to Google under their privacy policy. So I suppose that increases the number of computer unsophisticates in the count.

[kevkrom]

Plus all those of us who turn that feature off in Preferences don't get reported back to Google under their privacy policy

They're looking at server logs, not feedback from clients. The privacy policy wouldn't stop them from seeing what was queried (they just wouldn't save info on who did the querying).

[Cicero]

Plus let's not forget Paris Hilton. Or maybe we should?

[Cicero]

Hmm. I stand corrected.

[Proud2BeRight]

Does that include all searches for "dim bulb", "dumb", "brainless", "lack of talent", "overrated", and similar words and phrases?

[Cicero]

Light bulb jokes are probably well down the list.

[The Mayor]

Maybe she has a air valve to add or let out air?
LOL!

[Cicero]

It really is a remarkable mystery. Constant growth I could understand. But growing and shrinking? Maybe she's a space alien?

[Chewbacca]

She has some well made pushup bras.