The Numbers Crunch: Twitter loves WikiLeaks

Also this week: Axl Rose rocks TA on Facebook and YouTube; JPost readers remember Shamir; #j14 spiking in TA.

By ELANA KIRSH
Numbers Crunch 311 (photo credit: Mrkay Design)
Numbers Crunch 311
(photo credit: Mrkay Design)
The term #syriafiles was trending high on Twitter Thursday afternoon, after WikiLeaks announced in a London press conference that it had begun publishing more than two million emails from Syrian officials. In the hours after the story broke, the story registered as the micro-blogging site’s top trend, with over 17,000 tweets within 10 hours of the presser, according to Topsy Labs.
On Twitter locally, the social protest movement term #j14 spiked again this week. The term was mainly posted in the Tel Aviv area, according to Trendsmap. The new media rumblings came in the week after several thousand people marched through central Tel Aviv and unveiled a “social justice convention,” laying out their demands for the next budget.
Elsewhere on social media, a bootleg video of Guns N’ Roses playing Hatikva in Tel Aviv was the second most-viewed YouTube video in Israel this week, garnering over 30,000 views since the Tuesday night concert.
The rock band’s frontman Axl Rose also did the rounds of Facebook during the tour, with a shot from the streets of Tel Aviv registering as the top post on JPost’s Facebook page. Fans also engaged online after the passing of former prime minister Yitzhak Shamir, posting comments and sharing stories and memories.
JPost Top Five Facebook posts:1. A photo of Axl Rose, spotted in Tel Aviv2. Gil Shefler’s Munich widow story3. Alexander Zvielli’s Shamir obituary4. A photo of a giant backgammon board on Tel Aviv beach5. A post on Shamir’s funeral and legacy
The former prime minister’s legacy drew attention on JPost.com too, with two stories on his passing registering in the five most-read stories of the week. Regional issues made up the remainder of the top page views.
JPost Top Five most-read stories: 1. Former PM Shamir passes away at age 96 in Tel Aviv2. Report: 'IAF strikes Hezbollah target in Lebanese territory'3. Hamas: Mossad assassinated al-Mabhouh deputy4. Yitzhak Levanon: 'Egypt doesn't seek war; cold peace to get brittle'5. Hezbollah could blockade sea in future war
Similar themes stirred interest on the talkback forums this week, with the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem’s listing as a World Heritage Site under the name “Palestine” drawing the most comments.
JPost Top Five most-active threads: 1. UNESCO: Nativity Church heritage site in 'Palestine'2. Falk: 'Int'l court must act on Palestinian prisoner issue'3. Former PM Shamir passes away at age 96 in Tel Aviv4. Border Police probing officer filmed kicking child5. Hezbollah could blockade sea in future war
To wrap up, a look at the top mobile devices JPost readers use to get their news when they’re away from the computer. Apple products took the top spots, followed by Android smartphones.
JPost Top Five mobile devices:
1. Apple iPad2. Apple iPhone3. SonyEricsson LT15i Xperia Arc4. Apple iPod Touch5. Motorola DroidX
From news sites to blogs, tweets to videos, The Numbers Crunch is a weekly column which zooms out and brings you the big picture online, from Israel, the Middle East and around the world, and poll results from JPost.com.

The writer is the Internet desk manager at The Jerusalem Post.