Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2017-12-18/Traffic report
Notable heroes and bad guys
- This traffic report is adapted from the Top 25 Report, prepared with commentary by Stormy clouds (November 12 to 18, November 27 to December 2) and igordebraga (November 19 to 26).
Unite the League (November 12 to 18)
This week's list is heavily dominated by superheroes, courtesy of Justice League, Thor: Ragnarok, and the telekinetic shenanigans of Stranger Things. On a more sombre note, death and sexual harassment also creep in to disrupt the conversation, as they are wont to do. Google played its usual roles in elevating articles to the list, while the FIFA World Cup attracted the interest of many readers.
For the week of November 12 to 18, the most popular articles on Wikipedia, as determined from the WP:5000 report were:
| Rank | Article | Class | Views | Image | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justice League (film) | 
|
2,295,725 |  |
Another DC Extended Universe release, another stark division in film criticism circles. It seems even Joss Whedon (pictured) could not rewrite Bats, Wonder Woman and co. to unanimous glory. |
| 2 | Lil Peep | 
|
2,079,370 |  |
The hip hop artist died aged 21, prompting an outpour of sympathy from the music industry. Cause of death is unknown, but his vivid Instagram posts indicate an overdose. |
| 3 | Stranger Things |
|
1,058,262 |  |
Finally knocked from its perch, it is in third that we find Netflix's sci-fi-horror extravaganza. Evidently, people are still binge-watching the second series in a large volume. I chalk it down to the Eggos. |
| 4 | Deaths in 2017 | 
|
722,052 |  |
Propelled upwards by Lil Peep (#2), the list of the fallen remains popular among the morbid Wikipedians. |
| 5 | Thor: Ragnarok |
|
742,455 |  |
Thor may have lost Mjölnir, but he still captures the public's imagination. The film took a hit in the face of the Justice League, but with $700 million in the bank, I doubt Marvel is worried. |
| 6 | 2018 FIFA World Cup |
|
742,011 |  |
In association football news, the final play-offs were concluded in the qualification campaign for the World Cup in Russia next year. But, with neither Irish team going, does anyone really care? |
| 7 | Jason Momoa |
|
735,871 |  |
The hulking actor, recently in hot water over some comments made at Comic-Con several years ago, portrayed Aquaman in Justice League (#1). |
| 8 | Roy Moore | 
|
706,300 |  |
The GOP candidate for Alabama's vacant United States Senate seat continues to be in the news as a result of his alleged sexual misdemeanours. First politician on the list for these reasons, not the last. |
| 9 | 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualification |
|
706,298 | 
|
See #6 |
| 10 | Charles Manson |
|
680,990 |  |
The man behind the infamous murders of, among others, Sharon Tate in 1969 was rushed to hospital from his prison after falling ill. He is also set to be the subject of the next Quentin Tarantino movie, apparently. |
It's Just Sex and Violence, Melody and Silence (November 19 to 25, 2017)
Two deaths spearhead the week, and aside from them being from a "family", they couldn't be any more different: the head of the Manson family, a madman who caused death in the sixties; and the eldest son of The Partridge Family, an actor-singer who was a pop star in the 1970s. No wonder the ever-present yearly death list is also high. Many things that began or happened the previous week are also present: an Indian woman winning Miss World, the ultra-violent Netflix comics adaptation The Punisher, a Zimbabwean dictator being brought down by a coup, and the latest WWE event. As to be expected every November, Thanksgiving (#5) and the shopping spree that follows (#8) make their appearances too.
| Rank | Article | Class | Views | Image | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charles Manson |
|
3,258,765 |  |
If there is one guy who doesn't deserve a "rest in peace", it's the one who created a commune/cult that led to ten brutal murders, most infamously a pregnant woman. That being said, Charles Manson died after 46 years of a life sentence, the third imprisonment of his life. |
| 2 | David Cassidy |
|
2,388,401 |  |
Going from the Manson family to The Partridge Family: the eldest son in that sitcom and subsequent pop singer David Cassidy died at the age of 67, having retired earlier this year as dementia was taking its toll on him. |
| 3 | Justice League (film) |
|
1,897,568 |  |
The long-awaited encounter of the DC Comics superheroes has the same Joss Whedon that helmed Marvel's equivalent The Avengers co-writing (plus directing what Zack Snyder left unfinished), but has not been the same runaway success. Reviews are mixed, finding it entertaining but vapid, and box office is sluggish compared to what DC accomplished with Wonder Woman earlier this year. |
| 4 | Manushi Chhillar |
|
1,322,126 | 
|
While many people can't believe beauty pageants are still a thing, Ms. Chhillar won Miss World 2017. Given the last Indian to win this contest was Bollywood superstar Priyanka Chopra in 2000, she can hope the contest was the first step to a fruitful career. |
| 5 | Thanksgiving |
|
1,059,555 |  |
Every November, the beloved American holiday enters this list in the top 5, even if this year views are down by 200,000. |
| 6 | Survivor Series (2017) |
|
865,133 |  |
The latest WWE pantomime was held at the Toyota Center (pictured) in Houston. |
| 7 | Deaths in 2017 |
|
852,035 | |
"Death greets me warm, now I will just say goodbye". |
| 8 | Black Friday (shopping) |
|
835,404 |  |
One day after Thanksgiving (#5), there are promotions to ignite the Christmas shopping season. In my country at least, it's not rare for retailers to instead do a "Black Fraud" where they're faking the discounts. |
| 9 | The Punisher (TV series) |
|
835,012 |  |
The Marvel Comics vigilante Frank Castle finally got an acclaimed adaptation following three movies with middling reception, as Jon Bernthal (pictured) played him in the second season of Daredevil that led to this Punisher solo series, which debuted on Netflix on November 17th. |
| 10 | Robert Mugabe | 
|
776,252 |  |
Nearly a week after a coup placed him on house arrest, Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe signed his resignation, finishing nearly 40 years in power filled with human rights violations and a ruined economy. |
Buckingham Betrothal Bells (November 26 to December 2)
This week is dominated by the engagement of Meghan Markle (#1) and Prince Harry (#3). Congratulations to the soon-to-be weds, though I lack the enthusiasm for what is ostensibly a figurehead and tourist attraction, especially given the minute likelihood of Harry ever governing ahead of his brother. Allow the people their escapism into the realm of ballrooms and gowns, I suppose, even though it may be hokum in my eyes.
Other recurrent motifs in the list include, as ever, superheroes, with the new trailer for Avengers: Infinity War driving excitement for many MCU properties. The slow revelation that every man in media is a predator sees Matt Lauer land high on the list (#2). A number of deaths also make an appearance, some more dramatic than others (#8). All in all, a rather exciting list, especially given the dominance in page views of the Suits star above all competitors, with over four times as many views as number two. Not too shabby.
| Rank | Article | Class | Views | Image | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Meghan Markle |
|
8,747,196 |  |
This week's list begins with Meghan Markle, who announced her engagement to Prince Harry, and subsequently whipped the world's media, and Wikipedia, evidently, into a phenomenal frenzy to find knowledge about the second most famous actress turned princess. |
| 2 | Matt Lauer |
|
2,014,217 |  |
Another week, another monster. The long-serving host of The Today Show joins the depressingly endless list of sexual predators, prompting NBC to fire him. For further information, consult the Twitter page of another NBC sex criminal. |
| 3 | Prince Harry |
|
1,900,012 |  |
The young prince has grown and matured so much, finally putting a ring on it and rendering Ms. Markle (#1) his fiancée. Many relished in the joyous love story, while many online commentators (and SNL) congratulated Harry on batting out of his league. Well done, voiceless Ed Sheeran. |
| 4 | Bitcoin |
|
1,084,519 |  |
In financial news, the e-currency had a unprecedented spike in value during the week, reaching $11,740, prompting The Big Bang Theory to make an episode on the topic. If history teaches us anything, this bubble will never burst. |
| 5 | Justice League |
|
955,873 |  |
The movie is not, in my view, too unobjectionable, and is thoroughly watchable, but that has not stopped the media attention around it, which sees it remain in the top 5. However, this is the internet, and there is no middle-ground. Therefore, it is an unmitigated disaster and an abhorrent crime against humanity. |
| 6 | Jim Nabors |
|
767,143 |  |
Wikipedia's patrons reacted to the death of the actor in droves, mourning the loss of Gomer Pyle and an institutional component of the Indy 500. |
| 7 | 2018 FIFA World Cup |
|
753,052 | 
|
As an Irishman, a certain Christian Eriksen had already left me dejected in the soccer front. Seeing the neighbours get a handy draw exacerbated this. At least I will get to see them lose on penalties this way. sobs |
| 8 | Slobodan Praljak |
|
749,384 |  |
Another death, albeit a far less sympathy-inducing one than #6. The convicted war criminal demonstrated a flair for the dramatic as he took his own life in The Hague. "O true apothecary, thy drugs are quick" indeed. |
| 9 | Deaths in 2017 |
|
749,088 | |
Given the presence of multiple deceased people in the top 10, one cannot be surprised that the list makes its way onto the report again. |
| 10 | Avengers: Infinity War |
|
727,183 | The first trailer for the upcoming superhero extravaganza dropped to much hooplah. Everyone knows that you must stay until the credits are over in all MCU films, which will be hard given that all of Hollywood seems to be starring in this one. |
Exclusions
- These lists excludes the Wikipedia main page, non-article pages (such as redlinks), and anomalous entries (such as DDoS attacks or likely automated views). Since mobile view data became available to the Report in October 2014, we exclude articles that have almost no mobile views (5–6% or less) or almost all mobile views (94–95% or more) because they are very likely to be automated views based on our experience and research of the issue. Please feel free to discuss any removal on the Top 25 Report talk page if you wish.
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