A look at the top stories of 2024
2024 was a banner year for news, with elections all over the world, the Olympics, and seemingly non-stop celebrity updates. But what actually broke through the noise and captured the public's attention this year?
In terms of web articles, the New York Times had several of the top stories of the year, including articles about Israel's bombing campaign in Lebanon (1.15M engagements), Liz Cheney backing Kamala Harris (853k), and Black men rallying for Harris (737k).
Beyond the New York Times the BBC's coverage of Princess Kate's cancer diagnosis (350k), and CBS writing about Teslas struggling in cold weather (322k) also saw significant engagement.
On social, the top posts came from a broader range of sources, but tended to be from celebrities making announcements. On Instagram, for example, Kylian Mbappe saw high levels of engagement on his post announcing he would be joining Real Madrid, as did Selena Gomez announcing her engagement to Benny Blanco.
That's not to say news hasn't gone viral on social platforms directly, we've seen several such cases this year. One of the most notable examples is the Daily Mail's TikTok , whose top posts consistently see millions of engagements.
News organizations moving towards a social-first reporting aspect is a trend we're expecting to see more of in 2025, and you can see who's already getting ahead of it in our latest report.
My goodness, no Guinness
The public's love affair with Guinness has reached new heights — so much so that pubs across the UK are having to limit supply of the stout before Christmas. What's behind this surge in demand you ask? It might just be social media.
The "split the G" challenge, where drinkers aim to take the perfect sip that leaves the foam line directly in line with the middle of the G, has captivated young people in a new way. Its rise in popularity has naturally led to more consumption, as people film themselves doing the challenge, and has also led Guinness maker Diageo to place limits on wholesale orders due to "exceptional demand."
News of a "Guinness shortage" first surfaced on December 4th, with the BBC’s coverage sparking public interest in the days that followed. More recently, a second, smaller wave of attention has emerged, this time driven by reports of pubs resorting to rationing pints. These stories have earned thousands of engagements, but it's the original TikToks featuring the "split the G" challenge that truly drove the most notable attention.
Creators in the UK have racked up millions of views and tens of thousands of engagements with their videos of the challenge, with celebrities like Niall Horan and Ed Sheeran fueling the fascination even more.
While "split the G" may have helped turn Guinness into a viral sensation this year, it builds on a long tradition of playful challenges, with another version the so-called "bottom of the harp" challenge.
When all is said and done, it's not the shortage or rationing that has put Guinness at the center of cultural conversations, it's the way it has united different groups of people in a shared moment of tradition, and of course a bit of friendly competition, all of which has added up to a viral sensation.
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5dMy goodness, no Guinness is an all-timer title Haley Corzo, love it.