Wikipedia:Top 25 Report/July 5 to 11, 2020

Most Popular Wikipedia Articles of the Week (July 5 to 11, 2020)
Prepared with commentary by Kingsif

Besides those related to Hamilton, actors in other musicals have taken a fresh shot at the leaderboard. Election season has finally arrived, bringing its own weirdness, and, for a variety of reasons, a fifth of this list relates to child sex offenses. What a week.


 * {| class="wikitable"

! Rank ! Article ! Class ! Views ! Image ! Notes/about
 * 1
 * Naya Rivera
 * 3,919,003
 * Naya Rivera at 2012 ALMA Awards (cropped).jpg
 * On July 8, this Glee star was declared missing, presumed dead, after she didn't return from swimming in a lake. As of this writing, the search is still underway. While her co-stars from a near 30-year career send supportive messages that she will be found alive, Glee fans have noted that she would not be the first of the young cast to face a tragic death, with the latest entry being at #25.
 * 2
 * Alexander Hamilton
 * 3,692,204
 * Alexander Hamilton portrait by John Trumbull 1806.jpg
 * This bastard, orphan, son of a whore and a Scotsman became one of the founding fathers of the United States of America after using his wits to make the best of that situation. He was husband of #10, and killed by #5 (but probably not how it happened as portrayed by #6 in #3).
 * 3
 * Hamilton (musical)
 * 2,203,846
 * [[File:Lin-Manuel Miranda, Phillipa Soo, Leslie Odom, Jr., and Christopher Jackson, White House, March 2016.jpg|100px]]
 * The 2015 musical about #2, #5 and #10, written by and starring #6 alongside #19 and #22, was recently released digitally as #21. It's proving popular on Wikipedia (no shit, Sherlock) as people around the globe realize they don't know very much about this important part of US history.
 * 4
 * Nick Cordero
 * 1,525,484
 * Brooks Atkinson Theater - Waitress (48193414186).jpg
 * The second musical actor on this week's list is another not-Hamilton entry. It's a Waitress (theatre pictured) entry. Cordero died on July 5 from medical complications after being infected by #11 nearly four months ago.
 * 5
 * Aaron Burr
 * 1,244,169
 * Vanderlyn Burr.jpg
 * Another historical figure featured heavily in #3 and #21, Burr ran away from the east coast after killing #2, only to be charged with treason a few years later. He was already charged with (though never tried for) murder, so hiding out in Europe for a few years and never returning to public office was probably a wise choice.
 * 6
 * Lin-Manuel Miranda
 * 1,116,135
 * Lin-Manuel Miranda.jpg
 * If you love musicals, you'll love this guy, who wrote #3 (starring in it as #2) among others. If you don't like musicals, then this is the guy you blame for making Moana so catchy. You're welcome.
 * 7
 * Ghislaine Maxwell
 * 1,036,223
 * Ghislaine Maxwell.jpg
 * Slipping down the list from last week is the lady with the name all the newscasters pretend they can say. The recently-arrested associate of #13 was born in France, which is where the name comes from.
 * 8
 * Mary Kay Letourneau
 * 1,001,528
 * Cancer cells growing in media containing Blebbistatin.jpg
 * This sex offender recently died of cancer (pictured), with her husband/former student at her side. With such an old case, I assume that more recent high-profile cases of pedophilia like #13 contributed to the bile fascination getting her a million views this week.
 * 9
 * Vikas Dubey
 * 990,245
 * Belly chain arms crossed.jpg
 * I can't say I know much about Dubey, but it seems he was a criminal who became a politician who became a criminal again, who got arrested this week before being released and then being involved in a traffic collision on July 10. Attempting to run away, he was shot dead. I can see why this has a lot of views now.
 * 10
 * Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton
 * 916,606
 * Mrs. Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton.jpg
 * Making her way up the list is the philanthropist and socialite Eliza, wife of #2, who is currently known for #22's performance in #3 and #21, though her final power song does list the many accomplishments she achieved in her long life.
 * 11
 * COVID-19 pandemic
 * 915,521
 * Jair Bolsonaro em 24 de abril de 2019 (1) (cropped).jpg
 * Two South American presidents (including Brazil's most staunch COVID-19 denier, Jair Bolsonaro, pictured) announced they have the disease as it starts spreading more rapidly in the continent. Elsewhere, various countries are using more local quarantines to keep it at bay. Hopefully.
 * 12
 * Charlie Daniels
 * 890,649
 * Charlie Daniels in 2017.jpg
 * This country singer, famous for his number 1 song "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", died on July 6.
 * 13
 * Jeffrey Epstein
 * 881,674
 * Jeffrey Epstein mug shot.jpg
 * Struggling his way back up the list, thanks to #7, is probably the most prolific of the child sex offenders here this week.
 * 14
 * Deaths in 2020
 * 869,381
 * Christian Rohlfs Tod als Jongleur 1929.jpg
 * Lord make me a rainbow, I'll shine down on my mother She'll know I'm safe with you when She stands under my colors
 * 15
 * Dark (TV series)
 * 709,874
 * Dark logo.png
 * Because Netflix has to compete with Hamilton somehow, even if it's a German thriller.
 * 16
 * Ennio Morricone
 * 708,826
 * Ennio Morricone Cannes 2012.jpg
 * The legendary composer died on July 6, after falling. Having reached the fantastic age of 91, he sure proved why We All Love Ennio Morricone.
 * 17
 * Bubonic plague
 * 687,888
 * PlaguePlaque.jpg
 * China has had a case, because apparently the last "plague" (#11) happening there wasn't bad enough. Fortunately, this seems to be contained and is much more treatable than it was in the Dark Ages.
 * 18
 * Kanye West
 * 669,992
 * Kanye West at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival-2 (cropped).jpg
 * The controversial rapper has announced his intent to run for president. He was quickly out-weirded by Elon Musk, who tweeted his support. Well, he's at least won the race on Wikipedia, as he's helped to knock the current president off this list.
 * 19
 * Jonathan Groff
 * 649,957
 * Jonathan Groff at Outfest 2013 (cropped).jpg
 * This star of #3 and #21, in the film for a staggering 9 minutes, didn't make the list with his co-stars last week. His sudden appearance may be because appreciation of George III's spittle is a slow burn, but is more likely related to the disappearance of his Glee co-star (#1) bringing in enough extra hits to push him up here.
 * 20
 * Pizzagate conspiracy theory
 * 603,048
 * Comet Ping Pong Pizzagate 2016 01.jpg
 * Apparently this strange 2016 election child sex trafficking conspiracy has found new, equally strange, life on TikTok, driving young people to finally use Wikipedia. The short version is that tin hat folk got their hands on some Hillary Clinton-adjacent emails and deduced they contained secret code about a child sex trafficking ring at an otherwise normal and unrelated pizza place (Comet Ping Pong, pictured). The long version? There's a tack board for that.
 * 21
 * Hamilton (2020 film)
 * 601,555
 * Hamilton Star.png
 * After arriving on Disney+ last week, this popular musical has reached new heights.
 * 22
 * Phillipa Soo
 * 589,831
 * Phillipa Soo, White House, March 2016 (cropped).jpg
 * Soo's voice has likely been distracting a lot of people all week, as she portrayed #10 in #3 and #21, alongside several other entries on our list.
 * 23
 * Amber Heard
 * 544,860
 * Amber Heard (43723454772).jpg
 * An ongoing legal trial is set to determine whether a tabloid committed libel when describing Johnny Depp as a "wife beater", allegations made by his then-wife Heard. She's also in Justice League, recent(-ish)ly announced to be getting a director's cut release, which might be why she's higher than Depp (not on the list), who was recently announced to not be in the next installment of his own franchise.
 * 24
 * Tammy Duckworth
 * 542,381
 * Tammy Duckworth, official portrait, 115th Congress.jpg
 * The Thailand-born senator from Illinois has become more popular as a potential VP candidate for Joe Biden, and was most recently the subject of racist comments from a Fox News host. Which only seems to have made her more popular so, way to go?
 * 25
 * Mark Salling
 * 540,951
 * Mark Salling.jpg
 * The once-boyfriend (and Glee co-star) of #1 killed himself in January 2018 after pleading guilty to child sex offenses.
 * }
 * 19
 * Jonathan Groff
 * 649,957
 * Jonathan Groff at Outfest 2013 (cropped).jpg
 * This star of #3 and #21, in the film for a staggering 9 minutes, didn't make the list with his co-stars last week. His sudden appearance may be because appreciation of George III's spittle is a slow burn, but is more likely related to the disappearance of his Glee co-star (#1) bringing in enough extra hits to push him up here.
 * 20
 * Pizzagate conspiracy theory
 * 603,048
 * Comet Ping Pong Pizzagate 2016 01.jpg
 * Apparently this strange 2016 election child sex trafficking conspiracy has found new, equally strange, life on TikTok, driving young people to finally use Wikipedia. The short version is that tin hat folk got their hands on some Hillary Clinton-adjacent emails and deduced they contained secret code about a child sex trafficking ring at an otherwise normal and unrelated pizza place (Comet Ping Pong, pictured). The long version? There's a tack board for that.
 * 21
 * Hamilton (2020 film)
 * 601,555
 * Hamilton Star.png
 * After arriving on Disney+ last week, this popular musical has reached new heights.
 * 22
 * Phillipa Soo
 * 589,831
 * Phillipa Soo, White House, March 2016 (cropped).jpg
 * Soo's voice has likely been distracting a lot of people all week, as she portrayed #10 in #3 and #21, alongside several other entries on our list.
 * 23
 * Amber Heard
 * 544,860
 * Amber Heard (43723454772).jpg
 * An ongoing legal trial is set to determine whether a tabloid committed libel when describing Johnny Depp as a "wife beater", allegations made by his then-wife Heard. She's also in Justice League, recent(-ish)ly announced to be getting a director's cut release, which might be why she's higher than Depp (not on the list), who was recently announced to not be in the next installment of his own franchise.
 * 24
 * Tammy Duckworth
 * 542,381
 * Tammy Duckworth, official portrait, 115th Congress.jpg
 * The Thailand-born senator from Illinois has become more popular as a potential VP candidate for Joe Biden, and was most recently the subject of racist comments from a Fox News host. Which only seems to have made her more popular so, way to go?
 * 25
 * Mark Salling
 * 540,951
 * Mark Salling.jpg
 * The once-boyfriend (and Glee co-star) of #1 killed himself in January 2018 after pleading guilty to child sex offenses.
 * }
 * 24
 * Tammy Duckworth
 * 542,381
 * Tammy Duckworth, official portrait, 115th Congress.jpg
 * The Thailand-born senator from Illinois has become more popular as a potential VP candidate for Joe Biden, and was most recently the subject of racist comments from a Fox News host. Which only seems to have made her more popular so, way to go?
 * 25
 * Mark Salling
 * 540,951
 * Mark Salling.jpg
 * The once-boyfriend (and Glee co-star) of #1 killed himself in January 2018 after pleading guilty to child sex offenses.
 * }
 * Mark Salling.jpg
 * The once-boyfriend (and Glee co-star) of #1 killed himself in January 2018 after pleading guilty to child sex offenses.
 * }
 * }

Exclusions

 * This list excludes 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 talk page if you wish.