Between Justin Trudeau’s journey to becoming Prime Minister of Canada and the race for the U.S. Democratic and Republican party nominations, politics dominated chatter on Facebook this year.
In the U.S., political eclipsed an outpouring of emotions over deadly attacks, strife, social issues and disasters, according to Facebook’s year in review highlights.
The rankings released Wednesday open a window into the cultural mindset by analyzing how frequently specific high-profile events, politicians, entertainers, athletes, movies and TV shows were mentioned in the posts of Facebook’s 1.5 billion users.
“This year, the most talked about global topics reflected the serious challenges people are facing all over the world – and how our global community is connecting and coming together in ways we have never seen before,” said Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook Inc.’s chief operating officer.
Top topics around the world
The polarizing candidacy of billionaire former reality-TV star Donald Trump helped drive early interest in who will win next year’s race to succeed President Barack Obama; however, Facebook said last week’s shootings in San Bernardino didn’t trigger enough discussion to break into the top five.
- U.S. presidential election
- Nov. 13 attacks in Paris
- Syrian civil war and refugee crisis
- Nepal earthquakes
- Greek debt crisis
Top topics in Canada
Canada’s 42nd election was without a doubt the most talked about topic for Canadian users. Political issues surrounding the election, including Canada’s relationship with the First Nations community, also made the top 5.
- Canada’s 42nd election
- Canada’s relationship with First Nations
- Blue Jays/Baseball
- Paris terror attacks
- U.S. presidential election
Most talked about celebrities around the world
British singer Ed Sheeran doesn’t have as many followers as Taylor Swift and other singers on Twitter but the voice behind the Grammy-nominated song “Thinking Out Loud” topped Facebook’s charts this year. All five of the top spots were held by singers.
- Ed Sheeran
- Taylor Swift
- Kanye West
- Nicky Jam
- Wiz Khalifa
Top TV shows around the world
No surprise here after the HBO series “Game of Thrones” enthralled audiences during its fifth season and won a record 12 times, including the prize for best drama, at the Emmy awards in September.
- “Game of Thrones”
- “The Walking Dead”
- “The Daily Show”
- “Saturday Night Live”
- “WWE Raw”
Top Movies around the world
The anticipation for the Walt Disney Co.’s revival of the “Star Wars” franchise loomed over theatres like the Death Star for most of the year, even though the film won’t be released until next week.
- “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”
- “Furious 7”
- “Jurassic World”
- “Avengers: Age of Ultron”
- “American Sniper”
Most talked about athletes around the world
The long-awaited May duel between two of the past decade’s best boxers captivated sports fans.
Reflecting Facebook’s worldwide reach, none of the most popular pastimes in the U.S. placed an athlete in the top five. New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady came in sixth place on Facebook’s list, while Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry occupied the seventh spot to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James in the basketball arena.
- Boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr.
- Boxer Manny Pacquiao
- Mixed martial arts fighter Ronda Rousey
- Soccer star Lionel Messi
- Soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo
– With files from Global News
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