Author: kayleij

This week, Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin announced the latest development of Russia’s invasion into Ukraine: a “partial mobilization” of Russians drafted into the conflict. While Russia’s defense minister stated that 300,000 citizens, all with previous military experience, would be mobilized, reports and on-the-ground footage suggest that not only is the number much greater but also that average civilians with no prior military experience are being drafted into service.

This mobilization marks the latest development in the ongoing conflict, which has significantly impacted the global theatre since Putin invaded Ukraine in February of this year, escalating the Russo-Ukrainian War (ongoing since 2014) yet again. Global leaders and civilians alike have decried Russian aggression and outspokenly supported Ukraine, with President Biden describing Russia on Wednesday as “shamelessly violat[ing] the core tenets of the United Nations charter.”

Much like the war itself, this draft has met with mixed reactions across Russia. NPR reports that for some, the call-up is a cause for celebration, while others are leaving the country en masse, backing up border crossings and airports that have routes to nearly all adjacent, visa-free countries. Meanwhile, the BBC reports that many draftees are already looking for exemptions or, in worst-case scenarios, drastic ways to avoid being sent to the front.

Naturally, though, misinformation – both intentional and otherwise – is being propagated across social media worldwide. These border crossings are one major source of such misinformation, with old videos of border backups reaching high levels of traffic on Twitter. Authorities, like the Finnish border patrol itself, are working to share accurate information instead:

Situation at Finland's borders has not changed with the announcement of Russian moilization. There are videos circulating on social media, at least some of which have already been filmed before and now taken out of context. There is incorrect information in circulation.

— Rajavartiolaitos (@rajavartijat) September 21, 2022

Still, both propaganda and valid discussions are rampant within the more than 3.22 million mentions of Russia alone since midnight on September 20, the day before Putin made his mobilization announcement. One Twitter user observes that the brunt of the draftees are from ethnic minorities and rural exclaves, such as towns across Siberia and the southern borders.

Everything I’ve seen on this mobilization so far points to Yakutia, Saha, Buryatia, Dagestan, Chechnya being mobilized in disproportionately large numbers. If this bears out, no question this is a systematic effort to deploy Russia’s ethnic minorities as cannon fodder.

— Bakhti Nishanov (@b_nishanov) September 22, 2022

Additionally, news reports are coming from Ukraine stating that there are now ongoing staged referendums, in which armed Russian soldiers are forcing Ukrainian citizens to “vote” on becoming part of Russia. Obviously, there is no freedom of choice in such a vote, and many locations that are initially being targeted by these referendums have seen large volumes of refugees fleeing, primarily along the Ukraine’s eastern border with Russia.

my family was just forced to vote at gunpoint in russian cosplay of a “referendum” in southern ukraine:

– they come to your house
– you have to openly tick the box for being annexed by russia (or for staying with ukraine if you feel suicidal)
– all while armed gunmen watch you

— вареничок.eristavi (@maksymeristavi) September 23, 2022

The global sentiment of news and social media toward Russia is overwhelmingly negative, with more than 85.7% of the more than 3.2 million mentions being negatively coded. Even within Russia, nearly just as much of the content is negative, with 84.2% of 16.57K mentions returning negative sentiment.

As the situation continues to develop, dialogue around the invasion in traditional and digital news media will also continue to grow, as other countries determine what to do in the face of Russia’s ongoing aggression.

Author: Kayleigh Jackson

The 74th Emmy Awards took place Monday night, and while there were plenty of high points in the show, it continued the recent trend of awards shows making controversial headlines.

Not that there were many eyes to see those controversies, anyway – competing with the first Monday Night Football game of the season, the show hit an all-time low in viewership with just 5.92 million viewers, down 19% from last year. Per Deadline, the MNF game earned nearly double the viewers compared to the Emmys.

However, online platforms spanning from news sites to social media picked up on all the moments of the show, from red carpet fashion to long-overdue award winners to Jimmy Kimmel flopping on a bit. In the United States alone, from Sept. 11 through noon on Sept. 14, the Emmys were mentioned 276.94K times, reaching 12.14 billion feeds.

Let’s look at some of the top trending moments of the show. As always, Zendaya stunned on the red carpet and won another award for her portrayal of Rue in HBO’s “Euphoria.”

https://twitter.com/TelevisionAcad/status/1569511365022486532?s=20&t=x4aKuggquxZS-9ybl4njDA

Zendaya also recently celebrated her 26th birthday, which host Kenan Thompson joked about, saying she was now too old to date Leonardo DiCaprio (who, relatedly, just broke up with yet another 25-year-old). Zendaya herself was mentioned 75.13K times during the same time window, a whopping 95% of which were positive in sentiment.

She was one of several Black women to earn accolades at the show, including musician Lizzo and “Abbott Elementary”‘s Quinta Brunson and Sheryl Lee Ralph.

So many beautiful, deserving Black women getting their flowers tonight. I could cry #Emmys #Emmys2022 pic.twitter.com/L5UrCOxZ9L

— McKenzie Jean-Philippe (@McKenzie_JP) September 13, 2022

Ralph, who has been an entertainment staple for decades, finally earned her first Emmy for her role as Barbara Howard in ABC’s heartwarming comedy. The multi-talented performer accepted her award with an a cappella version of Dianne Reeves’ song “Endangered Species,” widely acknowledged as the top moment of the night.

Sheryl Lee Ralph blew the roof off the #emmys with this speech! pic.twitter.com/MFJzIqxBWC

— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) September 13, 2022

Ralph was mentioned 85.84K times with an even more overwhelming 97.7% positive sentiment. Many reacted with widespread joy that she had finally won an award:

Lastly, while it was no Will Smith slap, one of the more controversial moments of the show was when comedian Jimmy Kimmel continued a bit he had been enacting with Will Arnett as Quinta Brunson accepted her award for “Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series.” Kimmel continued lying on the stage as Brunson had to step around him and give her acceptance speech above him. Many argued that not only did it take away from Brunson’s big moment, but it was also the epitome of white male privilege. More than 50% of all mentions of Kimmel this week are negative.

Brunson herself weighed in after the show, playing down the incident, but didn’t rule out confronting Kimmel during her guest spot on his show later this week.

Quinta Brunson addressed Jimmy Kimmel laying on stage during her #Emmys acceptance speech: "I felt like the bit didn’t bother me that much…Tomorrow maybe I’ll be mad at him. I’m going to be on his show on Wednesday, so I might punch him in the face." https://t.co/Bm8Bfhyi0k pic.twitter.com/cMDuZbq0AQ

— Variety (@Variety) September 13, 2022

Beyond the off-screen drama, several past winners cleaned up again this year. “Ted Lasso,” “Succession,” and “Squid Game” returned strong, while new winners from “White Lotus” and “Abbott Elementary” entered the ring.

With lots more engaged dialogue online than passive viewership on TV, perhaps the Emmys may want to consider returning to old formats of broadcast – either moving away from Monday nights or returning to COVID-era online productions.

Author: Kayleigh Jackson

With the playoffs wrapped up and the Colorado Avalanche the new Stanley Cup champions, the 2022 Entry Draft completed, and free agency on the doorstep, the NHL offseason is kicking off with a bang.

The Stanley Cup Final finished up on June 26, with the Avalanche nabbing the crown from the back-to-back reigning champions, the Tampa Bay Lightning, in six games. The juggernaut Avalanche were consistently one of the strongest teams throughout the regular season and made easy work of their opponents throughout the playoffs, sweeping two of their four adversaries. 23-year-old Colorado defenseman Cale Makar earned the Conn Smythe trophy for the most valuable player of the postseason.

The Stanley Cup Playoffs took place throughout the months of May and June, and consequently the NHL racked up 2.35 million mentions across platforms. The phrase “NHL Playoffs” accounted for nearly 320K mentions over the same span, while the hashtag #BecauseItsTheCup earned 5.22K mentions, most of which came at the start of the postseason as the official channels worked to drive traffic and viewership.

Meanwhile, both the Avalanche and Lightning had compelling – and lengthy – narrative arcs as they worked their way toward the Final. The Western Conference-champion Avalanche pulled in nearly 576K mentions, spiking at the start of the Final. As more fans’ teams fell out of the running, more honed in on the remaining games – and indeed, most were cheering on Colorado, which hadn’t won a Cup since 2001 and would be a much-needed change from a third-straight Lightning win. The #GoAvsGo hashtag was used more than 533K times, especially following their Cup win as content streamed in of the team and their fans celebrating.

Around half a million people were in Denver today, celebrating the Avs#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/rPRqmzpFep

— Barstool Denver (@BarstoolDenver) July 1, 2022

On the other hand, Tampa’s fans are well-accustomed to winning – not only in 2020 and 2021 with the Lightning, but also with the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the MLB’s Tampa Bay Rays. For many fans outside of the Tampa area, regardless of sport, their championships are getting a little old. Of the nearly 647K mentions of the Lightning, more sentiment was negative than positive.

While Colorado celebrated, Tampa immediately got down to business with some moves, trading defenseman Ryan McDonagh to the Nashville Predators and re-signing forward Nick Paul to a major seven-year contract extension. Assistant coach Derek Lalonde also left the team for a position in Detroit, all moves taking place within a few days of their elimination.

Re-signing Nick Paul was a priority, and per a source, it looks like he will stay in Tampa! #GoBolts pic.twitter.com/VFnXidAAXW

— Channelside Sports Network (@chsidesports) July 1, 2022

Proving there’s no real offseason, the 2022 NHL Entry Draft took place just a few days after the coordinated Cup celebrations in Denver concluded. Over July 7-8, the League’s 32 teams drafted 225 players over seven rounds, beginning with first overall pick Juraj Slafkofsky, taken by the Montreal Canadiens, and concluding with Ivan Zhigalov.

The Slovakian Slafkovsky and Canadian Shane Wright were originally neck-and-neck in expert polls about who would be selected first or second. Wright ultimately dropped to the fourth overall pick and joined the NHL’s newest team, the Seattle Kraken, in a shocking move. Slafkovsky’s mentions spiked on July 7th, the night of the first round of the Draft, as most fans’ focus had been exclusively on Wright until shortly before the first round began. Wright’s mentions also spiked that night, for opposite reasons.

Of course, Wright has also had to clear the air in the days since, once again overshadowing Slafkovsky in North American media. Viewers and media picked up on his response following his drop to fourth overall, and while he acknowledged the “chip on his shoulder” Wright has also had to maintain he was not “star[ing] down” the Canadiens’ draft table in anger. Certainly this is not the coverage any of these young players would hope for surrounding the biggest event of their lives so far.

"…there was no intent to stare them down."

Shane Wright wants to clear the air about a potential "stare down" directed at the Canadiens draft table after he was picked fourth overall by the Kraken. https://t.co/434HClI4LN

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) July 10, 2022

As many teams open up their prospect development camps this week and their new draftees get an opportunity to see their new cities and meet new teammates, eyes around the NHL and the players’ junior or amateur leagues will remain on these young athletes to see how they handle their first shot at the big stage. In just a few days, free agency will open as players are able to sign with new teams, and surely more blockbuster trades and shocking contracts will arise. Even as the NHL, like several other major North American sports leagues, settles officially into the offseason, there really is no rest for its teams, coaches, players, agents, media – and fans.

Author: Kayleigh Jackson

Earlier this week, Yellowstone National Park made headlines for two unique reasons – one positive and one disturbingly negative. The first national park in the United States, Yellowstone is best known for its stunning array of wildlife and distinct natural phenomena, such as Old Faithful geyser and its position over atop a “supervolcano.” However, due to major flooding this week, all park entrances have been closed as many roads were washed away and some campers stranded within the park.

Images from Yellowstone and nearby towns were jarring, as emergency services and rangers worked to quickly evacuate and warn other visitors and residents about the hazardous conditions and potential for even more flooding in the coming days.

(HEADS UP!) Roads in northern portion of Yellowstone National Park CLOSE temporarily due to heavy flooding, rockslides, extremely hazardous conditions; Stay informed about road status and weather conditions!

Read more: https://t.co/mymnqGMNN9 pic.twitter.com/6JUI9CWjFL

— Yellowstone National Park (@YellowstoneNPS) June 13, 2022

⚠️UPDATE (6/17 at 9:45 am)⚠️
Yellowstone continues efforts to recover from historic flooding; Limited reopening highly possible next week on park’s south loop with visitor entrance modifications. View flood recovery efforts, park operations info, & FAQs: https://t.co/zzoA8Id2mG pic.twitter.com/uFCGXGLpZL

— Yellowstone National Park (@YellowstoneNPS) June 17, 2022

From June 12 through today, there were 107.17K mentions in the United States of “Yellowstone,” a whopping 85% of which were negatively coded. That’s a rare thing for such a beautiful and iconic piece of American culture, and it focuses heavily on the impact of the weather. Terms like “disasters,” “destroying,” and “damage” are among the most frequent words and phrases used in negative content.

Discussions about climate change have spiked again, as people around the world are dealing with strange and destructive weather patterns, including brutal heatwaves across much of the Midwest and Eastern seaboard, as well as a freak hail- and snowstorm in Mexico City. Content and editorials similar to the following tweet have gained a lot of traction and circulation as concerns grow:

“Before, it was a handful of people—next to burning forests, or trapped by rising seas. Now? It’s London, a burning Spain, a flooded Yellowstone, a drought-stricken American West, a scorched Indian Subcontinent, Australia and Canada ravaged by megafires.” https://t.co/SJp97SrWLV

— David Wallace-Wells (@dwallacewells) June 18, 2022

Bureaucratic concerns have also grown, as history seems to repeat itself with Montana’s governor. Recalling how Texan senator Ted Cruz flew to Cancún as his constituent state dealt with devastating snow and ice in early 2021, news surfaced that Montana’s Greg Gianforte was vacationing in Italy as the floods buffeted Yellowstone and the surrounding communities.

Montana governor Greg Gianforte refused to say where he was when heavy rain and snowmelt caused Yellowstone National Park to be evacuated — until he was caught dining in a hill town in the Italian countryside. https://t.co/VA1oji8b3o

— Robert Maguire (@RobertMaguire_) June 17, 2022

As repair and cleanup efforts begin around Yellowstone, some experts estimate it will cost billions of dollars to return the park to the state it was prior to the floods. The importance of the park as a tourist destination, cultural touchstone, and natural wonder indicate those efforts will be well worth it down the road.

In positive news, the National Park Service announced this week that it is changing the name of a major mountain in the park. The U.S. Board of Geographic Names voted unanimously to change the name of Mt. Doane to First Peoples Mountain. Mt. Doane was originally named after an Army officer who commanded the massacre of at least 173 Native Americans in 1870, and the name change reflects a “long overdue” step toward reparations, per Chief Stan Grier of the Piikani Nation.

Unfortunately, this good news was largely overshadowed by the natural disaster, earning only 5.02K mentions across the United States in the same time period; both news cycles peaked on June 14.

(NEWS RELEASE) Yellowstone’s Mount Doane name changes to First Peoples Mountain; Action taken to remove offensive name from America’s first national parkhttps://t.co/Luo68gdEaD#FirstPeoplesMountain (center) rises between Top Notch Peak (foreground) & Mt. Stevenson (right) pic.twitter.com/QLk44phWlT

— Yellowstone National Park (@YellowstoneNPS) June 9, 2022

Hopefully, more good news will come out of Yellowstone soon as rebuilding efforts get underway in both the park and surrounding residential areas.

Author: Kayleigh Jackson

The annual Coachella music festival wrapped up Sunday night after two wild weekends in California. The festival, usually a hotbed of bold fashion choices and marquee musical artists, seemed to underwhelm this year. Despite a lackluster response on social media, several major events kept the festival in the headlines.

From the start of April through midnight on April 25th – the day after it ended – Coachella was mentioned 748.34K times across social and news media across the United States. Naturally, there was a major spike surrounding the first weekend of performances – a surge lasting April 15th through April 19th – before a smaller blip on the radar for the second weekend.

Much of the discussion surrounding the festival included the word “ticket;” lots of festival-goers were trying to sell their tickets for a weekend or even the whole event. These tickets had a stronger usage of the festival hashtag  – #Coachella2022 or more simply just #Coachella – than some other trends, indicating that its prime demographic of socially-savvy millennials and Gen Z-ers were hard at work, making the most of Twitter’s affordances to reach more people and have a better chance of selling their tickets.

Many artists gave impressive performances, as music festivals (and especially Coachella) have become something of a game of one-upmanship, with each act needing to be better than the previous one or performances in prior years just to make headlines. Here are some of the top headliners:

Here are the top 10 most mentioned artists on social media associated with #Coachella :

1) #HarryStyles
2) #JENNIE (#Blackpink)
3) #BillieEilish
4) #JacksonWang
5) #ShaniaTwain
6) #GISELLE (#aespa)
7) #KARINA (aespa)
8) #CamilaCabello
9) #KarolG
10) #JustinBieber#Coachella2022 pic.twitter.com/3BeTvt5ukP

— Quid (@quid_official) April 25, 2022

Harry Styles at No. 1 is no surprise, especially as he surprised fans by dueting not only with Shania Twain but also Lizzo. His newest album “Harry’s House” is also due to be released in a few weeks, and these items combined with the general fact that it’s Harry Styles made him one of the most must-see performances.  The terms “Coachella” AND “Harry” (yes, we’re all on a first-name basis with him) returned 105.85K mentions in the United States, with the hashtag #harrychella raking in just under 4K uses. It’s Harry’s world and we’re just living in it.

Billie Eilish – number three on the list above – also turned out an impressive partnership with the lead singer of Paramore, Hayley Williams.

new pics of hayley and billie at coachella ♡ pic.twitter.com/1uO6MtW0vR

— best of hayley (@hayleysoutfits) April 24, 2022

Billie’s haunting music, as well as her eccentric style of dress and strong personality also provided fans plenty to talk about. Not only did she apparently fall on her face during a set, but a top trend for “Coachella” AND “Billie” is “Baymax from Big Hero 6,” referencing an outfit she wore and the animated character it reminded fans of.

Baymax from Big Hero 6: https://t.co/6ynzsjomS3

— HOOD VOGUE is tired of poverty (@keyon) April 17, 2022

(This is Baymax, if you aren’t up-to-date on more recent Disney movies:)

However, the festival wasn’t all fun and memes. Concerns about having such a big event while the COVID-19 pandemic remains in full swing was a concern, despite its outdoor nature. Mentions containing both “Coachella” AND “covid” return 9.31K mentions, with a slight majority of those coded for negative tone. They really spiked in volume over the last few days, starting to trend upwards on April 24th.

the post coachella "so i have covid" posts are rolling in

— morgan sung (@morgan_sung) April 25, 2022

Comedian Jimmy Fallon of “The Tonight Show” poked fun at the festival’s well-known carefree atmosphere with this meme, noting the vibes weren’t the only positive thing in Indio, CA:

Positive vibes + positive Covid tests = Coachella. #FallonTonight pic.twitter.com/WyPp3cX7KK

— The Tonight Show (@FallonTonight) April 26, 2022

With the United States and much of the rest of the world determined to return to normal amidst COVID, it’s easy to see that the show must go on at Coachella. The amazing music, outlandish outfits, and wild drama were as exciting as any other year, nestled in the desert outside Palm Springs.

Author: Kayleigh Jackson

The Masters Tournament took place over the last weekend, with the PGA Tour’s top stars showing out in Augusta. Relative newcomer Scottie Scheffler took home the green jacket, while Tiger Woods ultimately did compete in the tournament after a few days of will-he-won’t-he hedging.

Unlike many other recent elite sporting championships, the PGA Tour is truly a global affair, and social media users from around the world chimed in. The United States naturally led the way with more than 25.5K mentions of “The Masters” AND “PGA” since the start of April, but Canada, the United Kingdom, India, and Australia rounded out the top five with a fairly even distribution of traffic. Those same terms pulled in more than 43.6K mentions total throughout April, reaching more than 304.77 million feeds.

Why look at only mentions of The Masters that also include “PGA”? After all, if we remove the second parameter, we have 841.74K mentions just of “The Masters.” However, this term also pulls in several other topics of discussion, including Master’s degrees and, strangely, political arguments about communism and immigration. While those themes are certainly interesting, they don’t add much to the golf discourse!

Back to golf, then; the top trending player is Tiger Woods, which is unsurprising. Woods led up to the tournament without committing whether or not he’d actually play. Ultimately, he did take to the greens, but he came in a dismal 47th place, with a score of six over par. Regardless, he was mentioned more than 309.9K times as he remains one of the most recognizable figures not only in golf but in the sports world as a whole. (The goat emoji was one of the top-used emojis in conjunction with his name!)

I didn’t play my best out there, but just to have the support and appreciation from all the fans, I don’t think words can describe that. Congratulations to Scottie Scheffler on an outstanding win. It’s been a special run. pic.twitter.com/8BAMJKlGFY

— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) April 10, 2022

Meanwhile, the American Scheffler is now the top-ranked male golfer in the world with his Masters victory. Though he’s been on the PGA Tour since 2018, this is his first major win, and he raked in the dough with a final score of ten under par. Scheffler was mentioned 113.4K times since the start of April, with a huge spike late on Saturday and a peak on Sunday, the day the tournament ended.

Players to win four times in a PGA TOUR season, including a major and a World Golf Championships event:

Scottie Scheffler, 2021-22
Tiger Woods, 2008
Tiger Woods, 2007
Tiger Woods, 2006
Tiger Woods, 2005
Tiger Woods, 2002
Tiger Woods, 2001
Tiger Woods, 2000
Tiger Woods, 1999

— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) April 10, 2022

Scottie Scheffler eight weeks ago.

• 0 wins in 70 PGA Tour starts
• $8.7M career earnings
• Ranked No. 14 in the world

Scottie Scheffler today.

• 4 wins in 76 PGA Tour starts
• $17.6M career earnings
• Ranked No. 1 in the world
• Masters champion

— Kyle Porter (@KylePorterNS) April 11, 2022

Next up on the Tour is the RBC Heritage tournament in Hilton Head, SC.

Author: Kayleigh Jackson

This week, both men’s and women’s March Madness tournaments concluded with two new champions. This year’s competitions were full of bracket busters and Cinderella stories, yet the Final Four for each was a return to the norm. The University of Kansas Jayhawks took the crown for the men, while the University of South Carolina Gamecocks won it all for the women.

Let’s take a look at many of the social trends surrounding these nearly month-long competitions – as the First Four round began for the men on March 15 and the women on March 16, and the championship games were played over the last two nights.

In a window from March 14, 2022, through noon on April 5, 2022, the words “March Madness” were mentioned just over 809.49K times, reaching nearly 8.34 billion feeds. The official name for the tournament, the NCAA Tournament, was mentioned only slightly less, with 737.5K mentions while reaching 11.31 billion feeds, likely due to more official team and media accounts with wider audience bases using the proper name rather than the colloquialism “March Madness.” However, the hashtag #marchmadness checked in with 9,125 uses while the #ncaatournament hashtag rounded up just 1,812 uses. 

Many athletes’ standout performances led to a growth in personal online followings, especially on Instagram:

https://twitter.com/FOS/status/1511154403084058636?s=20&t=lH2XgvY8LRfGj7w578N8Dg

However, the championship teams on each side as a whole were the subjects of lots of traffic and discussion online as well.

Men’s Championship

• • University of Kansas Jayhawks: The Jayhawks won the title with a score of 72-69 after staging the largest comeback ever in a national championship game, down by 15 points at the half. While acknowledging that searching just for the state/university name will pull in lots of unrelated traffic, the terms “Kansas” OR “Jayhawks” pulled in 1.41 million mentions over the same time window as above. Meanwhile, Ochai Agbaji was named the Most Outstanding Player (the unfortunately abbreviated MOP) of the tournament, and his name returned 50.23K mentions – naturally spiking over the Final Four and after he was named the MOP.

https://twitter.com/KUHoops/status/1511197786062077955?s=20&t=P3SsDXjcfg0i1jzKMcbd0Q

• • University of North Carolina Tar Heels: The Tar Heels have the opposite entry into the history books than the Jayhawks, giving up that same record-setting lead to lose their latest shot at the title. The terms “UNC” OR “Tar Heels” returned 170.8K mentions across platforms. The eight-seed was certainly the underdog compared to the top-ranked Kansas squad, and even though they lost many of their fans were eager to talk about first-year UNC coach Hubert Davis’s amazing path to the finals.

https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1511328392829886464?s=20&t=UVVkOax9yHXxrIrgK1pa0w

Women’s Championship

• • University of South Carolina Gamecocks: Leading up to the final, UConn head coach Geno Auriemma reminded us all he had an 11-0 record in championship games; basketball icon and USC coach Dawn Staley responded that she was – at that point – 1-0 in championship games, so they really had the same win percentage. Staley would indeed get the last laugh this year as her South Carolina squad would take down the perennial powerhouse Huskies, 64-49. The Gamecocks pulled in 362.33K mentions over this time window, with coach Staley herself accumulating 120.49K mentions – a whopping 84.5% of which were positive! South Carolina’s reigning player of the year Aliyah Boston was also named the Most Outstanding Player of the women’s tournament, earning both personal redemption as well as 2.25K mentions – including a name drop by Magic Johnson himself.

https://twitter.com/MagicJohnson/status/1510804044683649024?s=20&t=x_IiH8yeFuspGkZ5mhRVYQ

• • University of Connecticut Huskies: It’s impossible to overstate just how much UConn has dominated women’s basketball over the past few decades. Star player Paige Bueckers consistently turns in elite performances while Coach Auriemma has plenty of proof to back up his confidence. “UConn” OR “Huskies” turned in 815.7K mentions – interestingly, a major dropoff in traffic after the first few days of the tournament that continued through the final. Bueckers’ name returned 48.5K mentions, spiking on game days, while Auriemma was mentioned 28.76K times, with surges around the Final Four and prior to the championship game.

https://twitter.com/FOS/status/1511357668010643464?s=20&t=4KQbqlqbvdq1ViVjQ35Nqg

Honorable Mention: The Cinderella Story

• St. Peter’s University Peacocks: Every year, it seems that one low-seeded team pulls off an improbable run and downs its fair share of giants before the magic runs out. This year, the 15-seed Peacocks plowed through Kentucky, Murray State, and Purdue before UNC would ultimately get the better of them in the Elite Eight. These underdogs pulled in 239.3K mentions during their amazing run, while basketball’s new darling Doug Edert accounted for 36.97K mentions. Edert, along with two of his teammates, Daryl Banks and Matthew Lee, announced just today that they were entering the transfer portal, leading to the start of an uptick in traffic around their names at the time this article was written.

https://twitter.com/DougEdert2/status/1511389464790245383?s=20&t=k7NmNJhm1L0oly6Wt8mL-Q

Author: Kayleigh Jackson

If you’ve consumed any bit of news this week, you’ve probably heard about what many people are dubbing the craziest Academy Awards (A.K.A. the Oscars) ceremony ever. Though the stars shone bright in haute couture and the hosts made cringeworthy jokes – par for the course for all awards shows – this night was highlighted by Will Smith hopping on stage to slap presenter Chris Rock after Rock made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, and her shaved head, after her publicly discussed struggle with alopecia.

Rock carried on presenting as Smith headed back to his seat, and the crowd had reactions ranging from shock and awe to horror. (Sadly, Nicole Kidman’s iconic reaction was actually not to the slap itself but rather to seeing Jessica Chastain, which is also understandable.)

But viewers (and non-viewers who were glued to their social timelines) reacted to the slap heard ’round the world with what can only be described as glee:

I love celebrity beef I’m sorry I love when incredibly wealthy and successful people are messy in public, I am terminally nosy and i’m personally grateful we were able to witness this moment

— ellie schnitt (@holy_schnitt) March 28, 2022

https://twitter.com/AlishaGrauso/status/1508281022290403329?s=20&t=zWE5ngOY1N6ZrS9oky4tfg

Many supported Smith’s actions, noting that he was acting in defense of his wife’s ongoing struggle with the autoimmune disease as well in response to what’s known as misogynoir, which refers to misogyny specifically directed toward Black women. Conversely, others agreed that he was in the right to defend his wife but should have acted in another way rather than physical violence.

After the fact, Smith himself conceded that he could have acted differently, calling his actions “unacceptable and inexcusable” in the following Instagram statement:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CbqmaY1p7Pz/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

In the statement, Smith said that he was prepared for jokes at his own expense but a joke about his wife’s autoimmune disease “was too much for [him] to bear and [he] reacted emotionally.” He not only apologized to Rock but also to the Academy and the Williams family, whose patriarch, Richard, he played in the biopic King Richard and the role for which he won an Oscar later that night.

From Saturday morning through noon Eastern time today, the words Oscars or Academy Awards were mentioned more than 692.6K times online, reaching more than 8.58 billion feeds. Many of the trends focused on the actual event and all its trappings, such as Oscars 2022 or Red Carpet, but Rock’s name was also one of the highest-ranking trends, both on its own and in conjunction with the Smiths. The movie CODA, which won the “Best Picture” award, has cleaned up across award shows this season, and lots of traffic (just under 501.4K mentions!) surrounded the movie’s inclusive casting and great acting. Denis Villanueva’s Dune won the most awards of the night with six, and raked in over 398K mentions.

Though the winners were duly recognized and celebrated, the lasting legacy of the 94th annual Academy Awards is the slap itself. The Academy is reviewing Smith’s actions and is considering rescinding the award, stating they do not condone violent behavior at all. This statement was expected, but many fans found it hypocritical after noted abusers and criminals have won many Oscars without repercussions or similar investigations:

https://twitter.com/FlLMDORK/status/1508312075868819462?s=20&t=zWE5ngOY1N6ZrS9oky4tfg

We can only wait and see what decision the Academy will reach, and how the Internet will react when the result comes down.

Author: Kayleigh Jackson

In 1915, in the thick of the polar exploration craze, famed explorer Ernest Shackleton’s ship, Endurance, was crushed in pack ice and lost in the Weddell Sea, off the Antarctic coast. Thanks to Shackleton’s strong leadership and resourcefulness, the entire crew escaped the ordeal safely after being trapped in the ice for ten straight months. The pack ice shifted and swallowed the ship on November 24, 1915; the crew and their surviving sled dogs camped out on the ice for nearly two months before making a desperate trip in lifeboats to nearby (well, approximately 346 nautical miles away) Elephant Island.

From here, Shackleton prepared to make difficult decisions and ultimately settled on a do-or-die strategy: he and five selected crewmen would embark in an open lifeboat to South Georgia Island, the expedition’s original launch point more than a year previously. This trip was 720 nautical miles one-way, and Shackleton refused to pack any unnecessary supplies, knowing they’d be more valuable to the castaways past a certain point of no return. Miraculously, Shackleton and his crew reached South Georgia Island in just sixteen days and hiked 32 more difficult, mountainous miles overland to the closest whaling stations.

Shackleton reached the whaling station on May 20, 1916; by August 30, all the castaways on Elephant Island had been rescued alive and taken back to safety in Chile.

Flash-forward to March 2022, more than a century after Shackleton and his men first became trapped in the ice. This week, archaeologists on the Endurance22 expedition announced that they had finally discovered the wreck of the Endurance, more than 3 kilometers deep in the Weddell Sea. Serendipitously, the wreck was located on the 100th anniversary of Shackleton’s funeral – March 5.

This groundbreaking discovery was a triumph of maritime archaeology, with the ship remaining in beautiful condition. The frigid Antarctic waters prevented much decay or deterioration, with the name still evident on the ship’s stern.

The expedition has lived in memory due to the allure of the polar regions and Shackleton’s heroism in saving his whole crew, and continued to be scientists’ white whale due to the incredibly difficult conditions of trawling the Weddell Sea. Though the wreck is considered a designated monument under the International Arctic Treaty and so no artifacts may be removed, the knowledge of its location and photographic evidence of the wreck still combine to be a phenomenal discovery.

Naturally, such exciting news dominated both traditional and digital media. The news first broke to a wider audience on March 9, just a few days after the discovery, and traffic surrounding the search terms “Endurance AND Shackleton” naturally skyrocketed, with more than 83.4K mentions on the 9th alone. Of a week-long window from March 7 through today, these terms were mentioned more than 104.4K times.

Top trends occur not only in English but also in Spanish, due to the proximity to South America, and French, emblematic of the international agreements surrounding Antarctica. The United Kingdom also provided a significant amount of traffic volume, with the BBC breaking the news in a comprehensive article as well as holding claim to Shackleton as a native son and prized explorer.

Many of these themes express awe and recognition of this amazing accomplishment, as well as frequent mentions of other Endurance crew members such as captain Frank Worsley, who played integral roles in the 1915 ordeal. According to Smithsonian Magazine, the wreck fell only four miles away from where Worsley had initially predicted it lay.

Experts from other industries also chimed in on the social landscape, including a fascinating thread in which various marine biologists sought to identify the polar marine animals seen in the photos:

https://twitter.com/griffiths_huw/status/1501492716517171201?s=20&t=uL4BgXn9hLmrRZ_toBaYjQ

https://twitter.com/griffiths_huw/status/1501517171050037250?s=20&t=EQgUV3799hPuXTVUPVtSFg

While social traffic has dropped off again following the initial newsbreak on March 9, there’s no doubt this major discovery has altered both modern maritime archaeology as well as our historical knowledge of the event.

Author: Kayleigh Jackson

The 2022 NFL Scouting Combine took place in Indianapolis over the last few days, as the best and brightest college football stars showed off their skills to potential future teams. As the 2022 Draft approaches, the next month and a half for these players will be quite a busy time.

Of course, last year, Clemson’s own Trevor Lawrence was taken by the Jacksonville Jaguars as the first-overall pick, and the Jaguars yet again hold the number-one spot, followed by the Lions, Texans, Jets, and Giants to round out the top five.

Live results as well as several mock drafts have been popping up across the Internet as events concluded and coverage wrapped up. From the start of the month through midnight on March 6, the final day of the Combine, there were 129.65K mentions across social media of the term “NFL Combine” alone, with a reach of more than 2.05 billion. Traffic surged on the first day of the event, March 3, peaking with more than 32.8K mentions. While Twitter led the way in mentions as usual, traditional news outlets as well as Reddit also offered more mentions than they normally do in comparison to such platforms.

Most mentions were neutral in sentiment, with an overwhelming 108.1K neutral mentions. Most of these are simply reports of news and results without any opinion filtered into them.

State by state, many of the locations with high traffic and levels of discussion were those that offered many schools and players up for the Combine. Texas, California, Florida, Ohio, and Georgia were the top five highest-volume states. While these all offer top-tier prospects and lots of the discussion online focuses around their favorite school’s players, Florida is a unique example. Not only are collegiate fans looking at their players, but Jaguars fans are also weighing in on the wide open field ahead of them for whoever their team might select.

This year, Clemson put four players on show: CBs Andrew Booth, Jr., and Mario Goodrich; WR Justyn Ross; and LB Baylon Spector.

https://twitter.com/ClemsonFB/status/1499452407461433350?s=20&t=-SNqE_vYUrmVu8ASsp9ARw

Author: Kayleigh Jackson