Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2019-10-31/Traffic report

Traffic report

Wrestling with a couple of teenagers, a Nobelist, and a lot of jokers

This traffic report is adapted from the Top 25 Report, prepared with commentary by Igordebraga (September 22 to October 5, October 13 to 19) and Hugsyrup (October 6 to 12).

All around the world, you've got to spread the word (September 22 to 28)

Most Popular Wikipedia Articles of the Week (September 22 to 28, 2019)

This is a week where our report goes all over the place, and this can be attested by how the only article with millions of views is a teenage environmental activist. Otherwise, there's crimes (#2), deaths (#3, #6, #7), economical turmoil (#4) , movies (#5, #8), TV (#10), and Google Doodles (#9).

For the week of September 22 to 28, 2019, the 25 most popular articles on Wikipedia, as determined from the WP:5000 report were:

Rank	Article	Views	About
1	Greta Thunberg	2,348,736	Described by Samantha Bee as "a 16-year old with an agenda who knows how to hold a grudge (that) terrifies me, and I love her for it", this young Swedish activist has been in the news for her eloquent speeches complaining on the lack of action to control climate change. In the meantime, the internet has been appropriating Miss Thunberg's image in both amusing and demonizing ways.
2	6ix9ine	866,603	In a sharp contrast to our #1, someone with a terrible public image: a rapper who began his court trial alongside ten other members of the Nine Trey Gangsters for charges of racketeering, drug distribution, weapon possession, and conspiracy to commit murder.
3	Deaths in 2019	759,498	We live a dying dream If you know what I mean It's all that I've ever known
4	Thomas Cook Group	723,045	The sudden closure of this British travel group not only left 21,000 people without a job, but forced the Civil Aviation Authority to find a way to bring 150,000 tourists back home.
5	Joker (2019 film)	665,946	Joaquin Phoenix as the famed DC Comics supervillain hasn't even hit theaters yet, but already raised discussions among moral guardians whether its plentiful violence can inspire copycats.
6	Sid Haig	611,865	Two dead actors, one from Hollywood (who despite a long career had his most success in the 21st century, especially as Captain Spaulding in three Rob Zombie horror flicks) and another from Tollywood (best known as a comedian and with over 600 film credits!).
7	Venu Madhav (actor)	609,604
8	Ad Astra (film)	597,534	Brad Pitt goes after his father Tommy Lee Jones in the orbit of Neptune, in a movie that's a rough cross between 2001 and Apocalypse Now. Ad Astra had positive reviews (this writer wasn't very impressed, but admits the movie is alright) and opened at #2 in the box office behind Downton Abbey.
9	Junko Tabei	574,227	Google celebrated the 80th anniversary of this Japanese climber (who died in 2016), who became the first woman to top Mt. Everest, and also the biggest mountains of every continent.
10	Fleabag	555,826	Upon hearing this was the Emmy favorite, this writer decided to watch it... and the day after Fleabag had won many of the top prizes, including Comedy Series, had wasted six hours of his life with all the episodes of this unfunny, vulgar thing that for every moment that worked had three which made him think "why am I still watching this?!" And to think that Amazon Prime Video already offers a much better series, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, which could have gotten the awards instead.

What a Joker, I play my jokes upon you (September 29 to October 5)

Most Popular Wikipedia Articles of the Week (September 29 to October 5, 2019)

Comic book movies, they happen so much every year and still bring in views and related entries to our Top 25 Report. The latest one is Joker, which not only topped the list but makes sure that the main star (#3) appears. Still in movies, there's American (#10) and Indian productions (#2), while the rest of our entries are scattershot: famous people dying (#4, #8), holidays (#5), activism (#8), music (#6), and Google Doodles (#7).

Take a look at my report, it's the only one I've got. For the week of September 29 to October 5, 2019, the 25 most popular articles on Wikipedia, as determined from the WP:5000 report were:

Rank	Article	Views	About
1	Joker (2019 film)	3,078,817	DC Comics combined the Marvel adaptations Logan (unorthodox approach adapting superhero comics) and Venom (centering around the villain – although in this one the hero still has a brief appearance) and thankfully hit closer to the former, as Joker is a very well made drama reminiscent of Taxi Driver where a troubled guy loses his mind in what is basically 1970s New York – though still with some laughs, given the protagonist is a clown and director Todd Phillips made a name for himself with works such as The Hangover. Joker had good reviews and opened to a whopping $93 million in the box office.
2	War (2019 film)	1,091,540	What is it good for? Well, at least ₹172.02 crore, as this Bollywood action hit starring Hrithik Roshan (pictured) and Tiger Shroff already made this much in the box office.
3	Joaquin Phoenix	1,048,608	Already nominated for Academy Awards in Gladiator, Walk the Line and The Master, Joaquin Phoenix is currently pegged as an Oscar favorite for our #1, where he's unhealthily thin and amusingly weird and deranged as a clown who descends into a life of crime.
4	Deaths in 2019	742,990	Oh my God, no time to turn I got to laugh 'cause I know I'm gonna die Why?
5	Mahatma Gandhi	742,664	Either he or some monk named Siddarta is the most famous Indian ever, and the holiday celebrated on Gandhi's birthday always brings views for his article.
6	Billie Eilish	690,661	The season opener of Saturday Night Live's 45th season had as the musical guest this singer-songwriter who will only come of age in December, and yet is already guaranteed to be one of the most viewed Wikipedia articles of the year – maybe in the top 10! Along with national exposure, the high views for the performance are probably also fueled by Eilish deciding to go Dancing on the Ceiling.
7	Herbert Kleber	673,197	Google celebrated the 23rd anniversary of this psychiatrist's election to the National Academy of Medicine – coincidentally, four days before his death completed one year – in recognition to his work regarding drug addiction.
8	Greta Thunberg	663,816	Another teenage girl, though energy-wise a polar opposite to our #6 – while Ms. Eilish sings slow songs calmly, Ms. Thunberg is always shouting to make sure her environmental messages cause the emotional impact they deserve.
9	Diahann Carroll	614,719	The first Black woman to win a Tony Award, Diahann Carroll died at 84, ending a career that also had nominations for the Oscar and the Emmy.
10	Judy Garland	569,100	Judy depicts the last days of the eternal Dorothy Gale, played there by Renée Zellweger.

Jokers, meth cookers, and child stars (October 6 to 12)

Most Popular Wikipedia Articles of the Week (October 6 to 12, 2019)

There are some interesting connections in this week's report. #1 is a popular new film, in which #2 plays #8, who was previously played by #7. #22 is the partner of #2, while #12 is his younger brother, and was a child star who died of a drug overdose, much like #13. That neat mesh of connections covers a good chunk of the week's report, while the remainder comprise a familiar mix of wrestling, Indian movies, Netflix productions, and of course dead celebrities.

For the week of October 6 to 12, 2019, the 25 most popular articles on Wikipedia, as determined from the WP:5000 report were:

Rank	Article	Views	About
1	Joker (2019 film)	3,916,575	It's no surprise that this week's list is going to be dominated by Jokers. The latest, and perhaps most controversial, incarnation of the comic book character (item #1) hit cinemas earlier this month. It features #2 as an isolated, lonely and mentally ill would-be comic who slowly finds his villainous side.
2	Joaquin Phoenix	1,766,842
3	War (2019 film)	1,109,505	We always see a lot of movies on this list, but it's not every week that a non-English film makes it quite so high up. This Hindi-language action thriller stars Tiger Shroff as an Indian soldier assigned to hunt down his former mentor, played by Hrithik Roshan.
4	El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie	834,546	It wouldn't be a Top 25 without a Netflix original movie or series. This week's #4 completes the story of Jesse Pinkman, played by Aaron Paul and last seen in the finale of Breaking Bad back in 2013.
5	Hell in a Cell (2019)	792,414	The Top 25 isn't all Netflix, wrestling and death, I promise. But of course the latest big wrestling event always has to make an appearance, and this week it was this one that took place on October 6, 2019 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California.
6	Deaths in 2019	736,002	Death and taxes may be life's only certainties, but taxes never seems to appear on the Top 25 for some reason, so I guess we're all a lot more interested in death.
7	Heath Ledger	610,510	Interest in the latest actor to play the Joker seems to have sparked interest in the character himself, as well as the previous incumbent of the role. At the time, many felt that Heath Ledger's portrayal in The Dark Knight in 2008 could never be matched. Whether that's still true is, and will probably remain, a matter of considerable debate.
8	Joker (comics)	589,608
9	Ginger Baker	540,799	The first of this week's recently-deceased celebrities, Peter 'Ginger' Baker was an English drummer and the co-founder of rock band Cream. He died on 6 October 2019 after a short illness.
10	Samuel Little	537,066	Believed to be America's most prolific serial killer, Little claims to have killed 93 people and appears on this list after making headlines for closing a number of cold cases through the chilling portraits he draws of his victims.

The Joker is wild, you know he's got a lot of views (October 13 to 19)

Most Popular Wikipedia Articles of the Week (October 13 to 19, 2019)

While It Chapter Two didn't have the lasting power of the first on our report, the same can't be said of another monster clown, albeit one more human: Batman's nemesis Joker, whose solo movie has topped the list for three weeks and brought along the main actor (#4). More movies can also be found, on Netflix (#8) and Indian theaters (#9) – the country also produced a Nobel winner (#6). Present as always are the recently deceased (#2, #5, #7, #16), politics (#10), and Google Doodles (#3).

For the week of October 13 to 19, 2019, the 25 most popular articles on Wikipedia, as determined from the WP:5000 report were:

Rank	Article	Views	About
1	Joker (2019 film)	2,163,336	Jared Leto apparently tried to block this movie from being made, given Warner Bros. had promised a solo Joker film for him, only to greenlight this unrelated 1970s throwback instead. And now Joker is almost outgrossing Leto's maligned take in Suicide Squad, with much more positive reviews, to boot.
2	Sulli	1,388,588	Ever since "Gangnam Style", K-pop has broken out in surprising ways, specially for those who write and read this report. And this entry related to South Korean music is a sad one, as singer/actress Choi "Sulli" Jin-ri died from a possible suicide at just 25, following cyberbullying taking its toll.
3	Joseph Plateau	1,076,405	Google celebrated this Belgian physicist whose research on optics led to the phenakistiscope, one of those disks that when spun create the illusion of a moving image.
4	Joaquin Phoenix	1,031,901	For those who remember the I'm Still Here days where Joaquin Phoenix had seemingly gone insane and decided to go from acting to rapping, him becoming the certified insane Joker in our #1 seemed like natural casting.
5	Elijah Cummings	940,273	The big death of the week, a Maryland politician who had over two decades in the House of Representatives and this year took over the Committee on Oversight and Reform.
6	Abhijit Banerjee	905,237	Indians getting big views, no surprise here. Though this one had a global interest reason for it, as Banerjee, alongside his wife Esther Duflo and also Michael Kremer, won the Nobel Prize in Economics for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty.
7	Deaths in 2019	746,129	Last night the wife said "oh, boy when you're dead, You don't take nothing with you, but your soul, think!"
8	El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie	712,432	The show Honest Trailers described as "so powerful, you binge-watch it on Netflix; so all-consuming, you push it on your friends, even if they don't watch TV; and so addicting, you can't shut up about it. It's basically like drugs." gets a Netflix epilogue centered around Aaron Paul's character Jesse Pinkman, that also served as an epitaph for one of its actors, Robert Forster, who died the exact day of release.
9	War (2019 film)	666,731	This Bollywood action epic starring Hrithik Roshan, Tiger Shroff and Vaani Kapoor is now the highest-grossing Indian movie of the year.
10	Tulsi Gabbard	624,330	Hillary Clinton claimed that Russia was "grooming" a female Democrat to run as a third-party candidate who would help President Trump win reelection via the spoiler effect. Many in the media interpreted that as being Hawaiian Representative Gabbard, who denied running independently if not chosen and had other candidates defending her.

Exclusions

These lists exclude the Wikipedia main page, non-article pages (such as redlinks), and anomalous entries (such as DDoS attacks or likely automated views). Since mobile view data became available to the report in October 2014, we exclude articles that have almost no mobile views (5–6% or less) or almost all mobile views (94–95% or more) because they are very likely to be automated views based on our experience and research of the issue. Please feel free to discuss any removal on the Top 25 Report talk page if you wish.

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