Twitter Test

By Marni Elyse Katz
July 12, 2011

These days, it seems you really only need to scroll through your Twitter feed to see what’s going on in the world. Or, at least what topics are being discussed. While we’re not advocating abandoning your careful read of serious news sites, we love the slice of authentic (if sometimes noisy) chatter of real world happenings in real time.

If trolling the Twitterverse is not (and won’t be) built into your daily online routine, but you’re still curious, log in for just a moment and glance at the column of text on the right of the Twitter home page. About a third of the way down there’s a list of ten terms, headlined "Trends." Topics related to those words and phrases are what’s being “talked” about most on Twitter right that minute, worldwide. (You can adjust it by country, too.)

We examined and (unscientifically) analyzed five terms on Twitter that trended sometime between July 5 and July 7. In addition to making assumptions as to why said catchphrases were so widespread, we cross-referenced them on eBay to see if their popularity spiked there as well. (On eBay, we compared sales of related items in the week ending July 7 with the week prior.) And, of course, we shopped them too. See what we discovered. And if you like what you find, check out a similar story on Polyvore we did a few weeks ago.

1. iCarly

First Lady, Michelle Obama makes a special appearance on Nickelodeon's hit series "iCarly." (Photo by Lisa Rose/Getty Images via Viacom International)

Trending on Twitter: Nickelodeon’s “iCarly,” a television show about a high school girl named Carly Shay who produces and stars in her own web show called, you guessed it, “iCarly,” has been the topic of assorted chatter this week. On June 28, it took the top spot as the number-one kids program. Last month, Michelle Obama filmed a segment with the cast that will air in January. The star of the show, Miranda Cosgrove, turned 18 in May, was shot by Elle magazine, recently signed to appear in the HP TouchPad campaign, and will sing at Busch Gardens at the end of the month. Finally, there’s been speculation on and promotion of the Teen Choice Awards—the show is up for four.

On eBay: iCarly is on the rise on eBay, just as it is in the Twitter-verse. Though there aren't a tremendous number of listings (about 2,300 at any given time), sales for items related to the show—everything from dolls to t-shirts to games to Miranda Cosgrove-signed merch—were up 33 percent doing this time period.

Roll over items for details

iCarly Large Backpack

(buy it now price, $15.99)

iCarly Mylar Party Balloon

(buy it now price, $4.14)

iCarly: Season 1, Vol. 1 DVD

(buy it now price, $16.52)

2. The Great Gatsby

Joel Edgerton (photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images) Leonardo DiCaprio (photo by Kiyoshi Ota/Getty Images) and Carey Mulligan (photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images) will star in an upcoming movie adaptation of "The Great Gatsby."

Trending on Twitter: F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel is about to be adapted again. As actors are cast (Carey Mulligan will play Daisy Buchanan, Joes Edgerton, Tom Buchanan and Leonardo DiCaprio, Jay Gatsby), Internet buzz spikes. However, no major announcements were made this week. We initially speculated that it was Leo’s gallivanting with Blake Lively that was causing a stir, but upon deeper investigation we saw that movie critic Roger Ebert’s tweet about the story was retweeted 100+ times. Interestingly, his commentary (posted on the Chicago Sun-Times blog on July 6) was not even about the movie, but a dumbed-down retelling of the tale.

on eBay: At any given time, there are about 700 listings with the term "Great Gatsby" on eBay. These can include something as mind-blowing (and pricey) as a signed copy of the book or simply an old DVD of previous movie versions. While sales for "Great Gatsby" remained low during our time period, they more did more than double from one week to the next.

"The Great Gatsby" with Robert Redford, Mia Farrow DVD

(buy it now price, $39.99)

"The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald, First Edition

(buy it now price, $1,099)

Dept 56, The Great Gatsby West Egg

(buy it now price, $135)

3. Roger Clemens

Roger Clemens

Roger Clemens of the Yankees pitches a game against the Cleveland Indians in 2002 (photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images). Roger Clemens leaving court following jury selection in his perjury trial on July 6 (photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images).

Trending on Twitter: Roger Clemens, the former Major League baseball pitcher, has been charged with perjury for telling a House subcommittee under oath in 2008 that he never used steroids or human growth hormones during his 24 seasons in Major League Baseball. The jury selection began July 6 and continued the following day. News outlets, sports blogs, and fans tweeted about the trial, along with comparisons to the Casey Anthony murder trial. One such tweet from @EricStangel: “It would be pretty remarkable if Roger Clemens did more jail time than Casey Anthony.”

on eBay: Clemens played baseball for four different teams during his 23-year career, and there is plenty to find from each on eBay from over 10,000 listings. While we can't imagine proudly sporting a Clemens jersey right about now, fans may feel differently: Sales for Clemens-related items were up 40 percent on eBay during the time period we analyzed.

Reger Clemens 1985 Topps Rookie Card

(buy it now price, $9.95)

Roger Clemens Houston Astros Jersey

(buy it now price, $89.99)

Roger Clemens Signed Major League Baseball

(buy it now price, $95)

4. Ringo Starr

Ringo Starr

Ringo Starr celebrates his birthday at the opening of Hard Rock Cafe, Hamburg, with his wife, Deborah Bach, July 7 (photo by Christian Augustin/Getty Images). GMA Summer Concert Series With Ringo Starr, June, 2005. (Photo by Brad Barket/Getty Images)

Trending on Twitter: July 7 was Ringo Starr's 71st birthday. The former Beatles drummer celebrated at Hard Rock Café Hamburg, with his wife, actress Deborah Bach, fans and friends. At noon, everyone proclaimed “Peace & Love,” continuing a birthday tradition that began in 2008 when a reporter asked Ringo Starr what he wanted for his birthday and he replied, “Peace and love.” People tweeted “peace and love” as well as birthday wishes to the star. In addition, this July 7, RollingStone.com posted its 1992 interview with the musician. A Twitter search on the name doesn’t reveal an overwhelming number of tweets that day, but apparently there were enough for at least a brief trending period.

on eBay: While fairly low to begin with, sales for Ringo Starr-related items actually fell by about 35 percent during the time period we looked at. There were a few price-y items sold the week ending June 30th (a signed baseball and Beatles postcard), whereas the following week's top sales rang in at lower prices. Seems that while folks were glad to wish Ringo a "Happy Birthday," they weren't rushing to shop his souvenirs.

Ringo Starr "Y Not" LP

(buy it now price, $31.95)

Gartlan Beatles Yello Submarine Ringo Starr Figure

(buy it now price, $59.99)

Hard Day's Night Ringo Starr/Beatles Studio Still

(buy it now price, $29)

5. Winter Olympics

Winter Olympics

South Korea celebrates its selection as the location for the 2018 Winter Olympics (photo credit by JUNG YEON-JE/AFP/Getty Images)

Trending on Twitter: On July 6 the Olympic committee announced that the South Korean city of Pyeongchang beat out Munich, Germany and Annecy, France as the site of the 2018 Winter Olympics. The winter games have only been hosted in Asia twice, both by Japan, making the choice particularly newsworthy. All the news outlets tweeted the decision. In addition, two days prior, winter sports enthusiasts tweeted like mad that Slopestyle snowboarding will be added to the roster for the 2014 Winter Olympics.

on eBay: With all this talk about the Winter Olympics, we wondered whether memorabilia from Olympics past and present would be flying out the door on eBay as collectors geared up. Turns out that while sales for Winter Olympics items remain low, they did jump 47 percent during the time period we tracked.