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What Angelenos Googled in 2012
The omniscient Google might know more about us than we're comfortable with, but at the same time, we're always curious to see what searches reveals about our collective psyche.
The company created its 2012 Zeitgeist site and a video that replays some of the highlights from our search data over the past year.
The Zeitgeist 2012 page has the most-searched terms in many categories, like events, films and people, but we asked Google if they could break down the data geographically for us. (There is a cities tab but it only includes data about the top-searched restaurants on Zagat.) Here they are:
1. Whitney Houston
2. Lakers
3. Dodgers
4. Olympics 2012
5. UCLA
6. SigAlert LA
7. LADWP
8. Clippers
9. LA Unified School District
10. Batman
For comparison's sake, you can check out the biggest search terms in New York City, and see that they also wanted information about their sports teams and utility company. (Of course, Angelenos looked up SigAlert, while New Yorkers looked up their transit system.)
1. Hurricane Sandy
2. MTA
3. NY Knicks
4. NY Giants
5. StreetEasy NYC
6. SoulCycle NYC
7. NY Times
8. LIPA
9. NY Daily News
10. Con Edison
For a blast from the past, check out some of the hot search terms from 2006.
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
