• It’s clever, it’s funny, it’s absurdist, and it’s a talker. That, to us, is a total winner. “Anything is possible when your man smells like Old Spice and not a lady.” Best. Commercial. Ever. Also worth watching: This related ad.

• We hope that this person didn’t catch anybody naked when they were trying to do this. Then it might start to get a little weird. Well done, though.

• It seems like every freaking day now. We don’t necessarily think it’s our place to tell a bunch of teenage girls what to think, but the Justin Bieber love is a bit much. This kid, at the tender age of 15 (he turns 16 on Monday) seems to have Twitter’s trending topics by the throat. And tonight, there he was, right behind Chile. You know, a massive earthquake that’s killed hundreds. Our question: Is he really taking over Twitter? We did some research.

His YouTube roots

• Usher discovered him on YouTube. Perhaps it’s fitting that Bieber, teen pop’s first true social media phenomenon, was discovered that way. The interesting thing is that the videos prove that he’s really talented, and just happens to be pushed by the major labels. Interesting. source

Bieber’s rank on the charts

• 6th Bieber’s album peak, which he hit back with “My World” back in December source
• 16th Bieber’s single peak, which he hit in October with “One Less Lonely Girl” source
• 2nd Bieber’s Twitter peak, which he’s at this week, according to tracker What the Trend source

• Why is he peaking now? Simply put, he has a lot of buzz behind him – he sang the opening line to “We Are the World 25,” for example – and, more importantly, he has a new album
  coming out at the end of next month. That was quick.

Popularity against major news stories

• Chile For now, Bieber’s popularity with teenage girls can’t hold a candle to one of the largest quakes to hit in 50 years.
• #hcr Last year, health care was more popular than Bieber. After Scott Brown’s win, Bieber consistently trumps it.
• Haiti While the Haiti quake was huge at first, of Twitter, Bieber has started topping the crisis in recent weeks.

Popularity against major pop stars

• Jay-Z The rapper basically owned Twitter the week of his album release in September. But he faded quickly. Bieber hasn’t.
• Gaga Lady Gaga might be the best comparison to Bieber – consistently popular week after week, moreso than Bieber.
• Miley On the teen-pop front, his biggest competitor is losing her grip in terms of social media influence. Bieber’s ahead now.

Conclusion: Is Bieber as popular as he looks?

• perception Every time you look at the trending topics, the perky teenage boy seemingly has the site in his (and his record company’s) pocket.
• reality Bieber has never straight-up owned Twitter’s real estate, but he has shown a lot of consistency over the last month or so. source

• The events are quite varied. Those incidents and nature of them had nothing to do with the nature of this event…and are not relevant to his particular altercation.
• Sea World Parks & Entertainment President Jim Atchison • Regarding the decision to let Tilikum, the serial killer whale, continue to work at Sea World. Tilikum has killed three people in the time he’s been in captivity. Despite his deadly streak, he plays many important roles at the theme park – he makes big splashes, he impregnates female whales and he’s huge. Simply put, he’s a valued member of the community. source

• yes The Shamu show will resume at Sea World starting tomorrow, four days after the death of a trainer in a whale attack.
• no Trainers will not be able to get in the pool with the whales as a safety measure after Dawn Brancheau’s death.
• yes Tilikum, the killer, “will remain an active and contributing member of the team despite what happened.” source

• Andrew Koenig was found dead in Vancouver today. Koenig, known as Mike Seaver’s sidekick “Boner” on the show, was found in a Vancouver park. He had been missing since Valentine’s Day. Our thoughts are with his family, including father Walter of Star Trek fame. source

• If you’re willing to pull off this kind of deception…what else would you be willing to deceive the American public about?
• Oprah • Speaking on her show yesterday. Her guest was Andrew Young (along with his wife Cheri), and they were talking about the ever-popular topic of Edwards’ affairs. Regarding what the purported sex tape shows, they revealed it shows Edwards “performing sex acts” while a woman who’s probably Rielle Hunter holds the camera. “Thank you for that information,” Oprah said. No, Thank. You. Oprah. source

• PETA posted about this billboard and then, just a few hours later, took the post down. Wonder why. Doesn’t seem controversial on its face, does it? source

• They didn’t seem to learn any lessons from the incidents. They knew it was capable of killing a human being.
• Whale advocate Captain Paul Watson • Discussing the killer whale attack which took place at an Orlando Sea World today (and pretty much chewed up the airwaves all afternoon). As a result, the Shamu show is canceled for tomorrow at least. That may not be enough, according to Watson, who notes that Tilikum, the whale in question, has had anger problems dating back to the early ’90s, and was involved in an incident that led to the closing of a Canadian theme park, Sealand. Watson suggests the 12,000-pound whale get returned to its natural waters: “Put it back where they got it from: the waters of Victoria, British Columbia.” source