• good The National, everyone’s favorite indie band, got up to No. 3 on the Billboard charts with “High Violet.”
• bad It was one of the lowest-selling weeks for the Billboard, ever, and Justin Bieber still beat them. source

• Justin Bieber should buy @twitter make it #BieberTwitter and then say “Who owns now bitch?” ;D
• A Tweeter who goes by the name @BiebsOrDie • Regarding her mission, and the mission of teenage girls everywhere: Get Justin Bieber in the Twitter trending topics somehow. They’ve been doing everything in their power to make it happen, much to the frustration of people who simply want the trending topics to provide relevant information (a fact we noted on Twitter earlier today). The thing is, these teenage girls are really just vectors for the music industry. Twitter has to figure out a way to filter its results better. source

• A few days ago, Twitter changed its trending topic formula. In one sense, it’s really good, because it means that Justin Bieber isn’t just hogging the top spot for a month for no reason (thank God), but in a lot of ways it’s also less useful as a result. Why? Because there’s no filter. Something tells us that simply replacing an American pop star with “Bonamana,” the name of a South Korean boy band’s new album, was really what they intended. Our solution? Filter by country, guys. Thanks. source

• “How come I don’t know any of the bands on the Billboard chart? Who’s Lady Gaga?  Where’s my oatmeal? Get off my lawn! And change my Depends!”

• We want to see Henry Rollins wearing this shirt. Some dude put this amazing piece of work on Etsy the other day, and we’re positive that the members of Black Flag themselves would appreciate the subversiveness of this fine piece of work. source

• Hope he knows as much about diapers as he does about crooning. Self-made teen idol Justin Bieber, 16, plans to take a break from his busy promotional schedule after recently learning that he got a young fan pregnant late last year. Classy guy he is, he plans to take care of her, and has already asked for her hand in marriage. He plans to hold a press conference later today, which TMZ plans to stream live. All of this came at an awkward time for the superstar, whose album “My World 2.0” just hit the top of the charts and whose throng of teen fans may not approve. source

• good?!
• stunning
• charmed
• cloudy
• flimsy
  

• We’re convinced that 13-year-old girls are slowly taking over Twitter, based on this chart. Chile was the most popular of the week (though WhatTheTrend would disagree), but Justin Bieber and “Jonas” (which we used to cover both the Jonas Brothers and Joe Jonas’ solo career) were right behind. Twitter should consider expanding trending topics, because they’re slowly becoming less useful.

• 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