Twitter tops Michael Jackson on Google Zeitgeist

Google has released the top fastest rising searches of the year, with Twitter outperforming the dead 'King of Pop' Michael Jackson in this year's 'map' of the zeitgeist and elderly singer Susan Boyle topping the UK search charts.

Michael Jackson rules this top as well, but the queries following are, surprisingly or not, some of the hot social media services of the year, Facebook and Twitter which came in at number two and number four

Zeitgeist surfing

Google has set up its zeitgest website to chart and map the year nearly over in terms on online searches.

"It's because of curious searchers like you and the billions of searches you do throughout the year, that our annual Zeitgeist has become an insightful look into a global mindset. So please check out our Zeitgeist site, which showcases many of these interesting trends across various categories and countries, and more about how we create the lists," said Marissa Mayer, VP of Search Products and User Experience.

As for the United Kingdom's current zeitgeisty search terms, Google notes that "Facebook, eBay and Spotify all featured in the year's fastest rising searches. People searched to learn about new sensations like Lady Gaga and Susan Boyle, but they also turned to the web to learn about the deaths of Stephen Gately, Jade Goody, and Michael Jackson.

"Meanwhile, the recession ensured that bargain hunting was alive and well in the UK, with people searching for cheap holiday options in particular."

We noted earlier this week that Facebook topped the list for most searches in 2009 in the UK, closely followed by the BBC, Youtube and Hotmail.

Google UK spokesman Anthony House said: "People searched about new sensations like Lady Gaga and Susan Boyle, but they also turned to the web to learn about the deaths of Stephen Gately, Jade Goody and Michael Jackson".