For the first time this year, Google’s year-end Zeitgeist statistical breakout included data about the Google+ social network. And that data makes clear that, despite efforts to broaden its appeal, Google+ is still a haven for nerds.
A breakdown of trending Google+ hashtags shows that the leading tag for 2012 was #SOPA, a reference to the draconian anti-piracy bill of the same name that was stopped by outraged internet activists. As if to underline the inescapable nerdiness of SOPA activism, Google illustrated its list with a picture of a protester in an Anonymous-style Guy Fawkes mask.
The number four Google+ hashtag, meanwhile, was #IO12, a reference to the annual Google IO developers conference. Number 7 was #SXSW, an annual Austin conference of particular interest to the tech startup set. The top trending textual memes this year on Facebook, meanwhile, were phrases like YOLO –- "you only live once" -– Gangnam Style (a dance thing), and Linsanity (a basketball thing). On Twitter, people tended to talk about what music they were playing, what they were thankful for and, within the tech category, their mobile service providers and iPads.
None of this is to say that an ultra-nerdy social network is a bad thing. But Google has been trying to broaden the appeal of Google+. As we’ve noted before, Google+ was seeded by predominately male computer scientists –- Googlers -- and outside surveys have indicated Google+ is still roughly 70 percent male. Just as Facebook struggled to outgrow the notion that it was only for college students, Google+ has tried to escape the idea that it is used mainly by Googlers, their friends and family.
“This is a successful, thriving, accelerating service,” Google+ chief Bradley Horowitz told me last month, citing the 135 million people active in Google+ streams each month. That’s true, but it’s clearly built, as with so many successful services, on a nerdy core.
Trending Google+ Hashtags
- #SOPA
- #Awesome
- #Sandy
- #IO12
- #Curiosity
- #Olympics
- #SXSW
- #Debate
- #BlastFromThePast
- #Eastwooding
Trending Facebook memes
- TBH (to be honest)
- YOLO (you only live once)
- KONY
- One-word Comment
- Gangnam Style
- Cinnamon Challenge
- Cray
- SMH (shake my head)
- Big Bird
- Linsanity
