Madiba, Oscar hot topics of 2013

CAPTIVATING: The official christening photo of Prince George.

CAPTIVATING: The official christening photo of Prince George.

Published Dec 23, 2013

Share

Johannesburg - Traffic, Nelson Mandela, sports games and a royal baby’s birth all have something in common: they all trended on Twitter this year.

Mandela’s death was the biggest South African Twitter topic this year, gaining more than 250 000 tweets, with over 110 000 South Africans commenting.

Oscar Pistorius was the second most popular topic of the year, with e-tolls coming in third, followed by the Gupta wedding and the British royal baby.

Mike Wronski, managing director of social media monitoring company Fuseware, said the way the Pistorius trial and Mandela’s death unfolded on social media was indicative of how much society has changed the way it communicates and accesses information.

“This real-time, always-on connection to current events represents a tremendous difference to media consumption not even a decade ago. It shows that we have entered into an era of proactive, consumer-generated journalism.”

Social media strategist Jodene Shaer has also noticed a number of unfolding trends on Twitter this year.

She finds South Africans are sport crazed on Twitter, and a local or a Champions League game can trend on Twitter.

“You can actually watch an entire game on Twitter,” she said.

Shaer said the traffic had become a frequently trending topic of conversation.

“It’s nice that we are finding ways to be social in times like traffic,” she noted.

 

She finds that South Africans tend to retweet and are cautious about actively engaging and sharing opinions. - The Star

Related Topics: