If you asked someone a year ago to Google “Cardi B coronavirus,” it wouldn’t have been met many hits. But a search for the words today will bring up one of the breakout memes from the coronavirus pandemic.
It’s just one example of how the coronavirus has shaped Google search patterns.
Google Trends, a website that details trending topics based on people’s searches, offers a glimpse into internet users’ most pressing inquiries amid the coronavirus.
Searches for Zoom, for example, increased in the last 90 days as millions were relegated to work and learn from home. Other rising queries in the U.S. included “stimulus checks” and “Tiger King.”
Popular “how-to” questions include “how to make a mask,” “how to make hand sanitizer,” and “how to file for unemployment.”
“You get a sense of what people genuinely care about and genuinely want to know—and not just how they’re presenting themselves to the rest of the world,” Google data editor Simon Rogers told Vox about recent search trends.
TikTok, though not as frequently searched as Facebook and Instagram, has seen its own uptick in online searches. During the pandemic, the app has become home to dance trends, inspired many to make Dalgona coffee, and attracted new celebrity users Jack Black and Haley Bieber.
Rogers told Vox that searches have been split into two categories surrounding the virus: Some are more health-specific or relating to one’s emotional state, and others have to do with accomplishing day-to-day routines and keeping oneself entertained.
Google Trend’s coronavirus page also shows trending insights from around the world. Phrases such as “food shelters near me,” “when will things get back to normal,” and “which countries are flattening the curve” have become more popular worldwide. Google Trends also updates “country-level datasets” every day, Rogers told Vox.
READ MORE:
- Automation ‘error’ shuts down Women of Sex Tech conference on YouTube
- This restaurant sent employees 8 pages of reopening procedures–but workers say they’re still not prepared
- J. Crew filed for bankruptcy—and Twitter is awash with garment-dyed memes
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
- The Daily Dot is committed to filtering the noise every day as COVID-19 seizes the internet’s attention worldwide. We bring you stories on everything related to the viral pandemic, from the state response to social media fallout, and all the technical flubs, emerging social trends, and disinformation in between. READ MORE ->
H/T Vox