The Toronto Maple Leafs, Rob Ford, and Justin Trudeau – if you’re a Facebook user living in Canada, chances are these phrases crossed your news feed at some point in 2013.
Earlier in December, Facebook Inc. launched its “Year in Review” feature, a look back at what the social network’s users were talking about on its site. Here in Canada, Facebook boasts about 19 million active users, and true to our Canadian spirit, our most posted-about topic was a hockey team – the Leafs.
Second was the Harlem Shake, a dance sensation based on a song by a DJ under the moniker Baauer. The song eventually had people everywhere recording videos of themselves doing the dance, with their own comedic spin on it.
That was followed by “Miley Cyrus twerk,” a reference to a sexually-charged dance that singer Miley Cyrus performed during the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards in August.
However, Canadian politicians Justin Trudeau and Rob Ford also found their way onto the list. Ford, mayor of Toronto, gained notoriety for his confession to using crack cocaine and for the slew of press conference gaffes he made over this past year. Trudeau, who became leader of the federal Liberal party in April, was ranked seventh as one of the most talked-about topics on Facebook.
Here was the full list of conversation-starters on Facebook this year:
1. Maple Leafs
2. Harlem Shake
3. Miley Cyrus Twerk
4. Boston Marathon
5. Rob Ford
6. Royal Baby Prince George
7. Justin Trudeau
8. Lance Armstrong
9. Pope Francis
10. Chris Hadfield
Beyond just posting about current events, Canadians also let their friends know where they were through using Facebook’s check-in feature. This year, most check-ins were centred around stadiums and arenas, with sports fans and concert-goers listing themselves as visiting the
Rogers Arena in British Columbia, the Centre Bell in Quebec, and the Air Canada Centre in Ontario listed as the top three hotspots for check-ins. Other stadiums included Ontario’s Rogers Centre and Alberta’s Rexall Place and Scotiabank Saddledome.
The full list of location-based check-ins is here:
1. Rogers Arena (BC)
2. Centre Bell (QC)
3. Air Canada Centre (ON)
4. West Edmonton Mall (AB)
5. Niagara Falls Tourism (ON)
6. Canada’s Wonderland (ON)
7. Rogers Centre (ON)
8. Rexall Place (AB)
9. Scotiabank Saddledome (AB)
10. Canadian Tire Centre (ON)
