Kony, Obama and One Direction all prominent figures in Facebook’s 2012 trends

12 Dec 2012

This month, Facebook Stories is reflecting back on the year that has past, looking at what was trending on the site in the US and assorted countries worldwide, and offering users the chance to check out their own 2012 year in review.

Facebook Stories is a sister site set up by Facebook in August to share the more remarkable stories that have unfolded on the social network. The site also helps users to discover new music and books, with recommendations and stories curated under a new theme each month.

This month, users are given the opportunity to see their personal review of 2012 based on their Facebook activity. Users simply click a button and a constantly changing collage of their images from throughout the year starts of a timeline of their 20 biggest Facebook moments in 2012. Posts highlighted include life events, popular stories and even birthday messages. The personalised year in review also shows users what friends they have added and new pages they have liked in the past year.

2012 trends: US

As well as a personalised year in review, Facebook Stories is also hosting the 2012 trends tracker, which is heavily US-focused. US trends include the most common memes, events, movies, songs, check-ins, public figures, books, technology, politics, sport and television spreading on Facebook in 2012.

Facebook 2012 Trends

Facebook 2012 Trends

Facebook 2012 Trends

Wait, TBH and SMH are memes now?

Facebook 2012 Trends

Facebook 2012 Trends

Facebook 2012 Trends

Facebook 2012 Trends

Facebook 2012 Trends

Facebook 2012 Trends

Facebook 2012 Trends

Facebook 2012 Trends

Rest of the world

There are also additional graphs from other countries from around the world, tracking the most listened-to songs, most popular check-ins and most-discussed topics in these regions.

Australia’s most talked about subject was One Direction, while The Hunger Games was a bigger talking point in Canada and Russians were rather chatty about Vladimir Putin and Pussy Riot. In Germany, more Facebookers were talking about Chelsea FC than FC Bayern Munich.

Famous thoroughfare Las Ramblas in Barcelona was the top check-in in Spain, while Disneyland Paris came out on top in France. Adele was quite popular with music listeners in Brazil, while Gotye’s Somebody That I Used to Know was the most listened-to song in the UK.

Facebook 2012 Trends

Most popular check-ins on Facebook in the UK in 2012Facebook 2012 Trends

Most-discussed topics on Facebook in the UK in 2012

Facebook 2012 Trends

Most listened-to songs on Facebook in the UK in 2012

All images via Facebook Stories

Elaine Burke is the host of For Tech’s Sake, a co-production from Silicon Republic and The HeadStuff Podcast Network. She was previously the editor of Silicon Republic.

editorial@siliconrepublic.com