Sunnyvale, CA — Dec. 27, 2001 — Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO – news), a global Internet communications, commerce and media company, today announced the annual release of its most popular search terms for the year 2001. The list is compiled using the Yahoo! Buzz Index http://buzz.yahoo.com), an interactive market research tool developed by Yahoo! to measure public engagement with brands, products, people and technologies on the Internet for both consumer knowledge and as a valuable tool for marketers. The Yahoo! Buzz Index 2001 Leaders lists are compiled from all the searches conducted on the Yahoo! network from January 1, 2001 – December 15, 2001.
The Yahoo! Buzz Index Top 20 Leaders for 2001:
| 1) | PlayStation 2 | 11) | Jennifer Lopez |
| 2) | Britney Spears | 12) | `NSYNC |
| 3) | WWF | 13) | Las Vegas |
| 4) | Dragon Ball Z | 14) | Eminem |
| 5) | Napster | 15) | Osama Bin Laden |
| 6) | World Trade Center | 16) | Nostradamus |
| 7) | Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone | 17) | Backstreet Boys |
| 8) | Dale Earnhardt | 18) | Pamela Anderson |
| 9) | NASCAR | 19) | Morpheus |
| 10) | Internal Revenue Service | 20) | Pokemon |
“While national and world news dominated the last three months of the year, entertainment and pop culture dominated the buzz for most of 2001. As a result, this year’s leaders include music, film and television highlights mixed in with the news events that shaped the year,” said Harold Stusnick, managing editor, Yahoo!. “The proactive searches conducted by Yahoo!’s loyal audience base of more than 218 million users serve as an excellent indicator of overall consumer trends and preferences.”
As PlayStation 2 finished the year in the top spot, this and related leading terms indicate that gaming culture may be on the verge of eclipsing movies and television in the pop culture lexicon. The gaming console battle has heated up over the last few months, but with the PlayStation 2 launching early, it had a chance to jump out to an insurmountable lead. Microsoft’s Xbox finished the year at No. 29, while Nintendo’s GameCube came in at No. 81.
Although the pop-music boom was proclaimed dead throughout the year, Britney Spears finished the year at No.2 as she proved herself the leader of the teen pop pack. Other appearances on the overall leaders list by artists in a similar category include `NSYNC (12), Backstreet Boys (17), O-Town (44), and Christina Aguilera (57).
The events of September 11, 2001 made their presence felt in the minds and searches of users. The devastation caused by the terrorist attacks created a huge thirst for news and people flocked to the Web. The most unusual trend to come out of the tragedy was an urban legend revolving around the prophet Nostradamus (15). His alleged “prediction” of the events of September 11 turned out to be a hoax, but that didn’t stem the tide of interest in his writings. Another notable trend related to the terrorist attacks was the upswing in patriotism. Searches on anthems, patriotic speeches and songs, and the American flag (26) soared as Americans looked for ways to express their support for their country.
Other notable leaders in 2001 in specific categories include:
| The Yahoo! Buzz Index Top 10 Leaders – Celebrities: | |||
| 1) | Britney Spears | 6) | Madonna |
| 2) | Jennifer Lopez | 7) | Christina Aguilera |
| 3) | Eminem | 8) | Mariah Carey |
| 4) | Pamela Anderson | 9) | Carmen Electra |
| 5) | Nelly | 10) | Michael Jackson |
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The Yahoo! Buzz Index Top 10 Leaders – Television Shows: |
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| 1) | Dragon Ball Z | 6) | Sailor Moon |
| 2) | Survivor | 7) | Days of Our Lives |
| 3) | The Simpsons | 8) | South Park |
| 4) | Friends | 9) | Buffy the Vampire Slayer |
| 5) | Big Brother | 10) | Oprah |
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The Yahoo! Buzz Index Top 10 Leaders – Athletes: |
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| 1) | Dale Earnhardt | 6) | Vince Carter |
| 2) | Tiger Woods | 7) | Kobe Bryant |
| 3) | Allen Iverson | 8) | Derek Jeter |
| 4) | Michael Jordan | 9) | Tony Hawk |
| 5) | Anna Kournikova | 10) | Ichiro Suzuki |
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The Yahoo! Buzz Index Top 10 Leaders – 2001 Film Releases: |
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| 1) | Lord of the Rings | 6) | Tomb Raider |
| 2) | Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone | 7) | Moulin Rouge |
| 3) | Pearl Harbor | 8) | Shrek |
| 4) | Planet of the Apes | 9) | Save the Last Dance |
| 5) | Fast and Furious | 10) | American Pie 2 |
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The Yahoo! Buzz Index Top 10 Leaders – Games: |
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| 1) | The Sims | 6) | Final Fantasy 9 |
| 2) | Half Life Counter Strike | 7) | Legend of Zelda |
| 3) | Diablo 2 | 8) | Final Fantasy 8 |
| 4) | Everquest | 9) | Black and White |
| 5) | Starcraft | 10) | Final Fantasy 7 |
About Yahoo! Buzz Index
The Yahoo! Buzz Index is calculated daily and leverages the speed of the Internet by capturing trends nearly immediately. The tool measures user engagement with brands, products and technologies online, tracks trends, and helps marketers monitor the effectiveness of online and offline campaigns.