Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2018-10-01/Traffic report


 * This traffic report is adapted from the Top 25 Report, prepared with commentary by Stormy clouds (August 26 to September 1), Igordebraga/Stormy clouds (September 2 to 8), Stormy clouds (September 9 to 15), and Stormy clouds/Igordebraga (September 16 to 22). Prepared for The Signpost by.

Courage is not the absence of fear (August 26 to September 1)
Once again, we have a report dominated by death. The omnipresent, inescapable reaper, bound to strike down each and every person reading this with the same ferocious, fearsome, fatal fall. The looming specter, lurking in the shadows of our collective existence, waiting for the moment to capitalise upon our unpreparedness, and unwillingness to let go of life. This week's report in particular is spearheaded by one prominent death—that of Senator John McCain, whose demise has propelled not only his own (former) BLP to an enormous viewcount, but also those of his extended family. Various subjects interject between the McCain bios, from the ongoing sporting bonanza over in Asia to the latest young adult hit streaming on Netflix. Owing to McCain's seismic impact on Wikipedia views, the report is considerably more lopsided than normal, but that neither detracts from nor diminishes its inherent intrigue.

For the week of August 26 to September 1, 2018, the 10 most popular articles on Wikipedia were:

Full report

My tea's gone cold, I'm wondering why I got out of bed at all (September 2 to 8)
Yet another week led by mourning. Along with holdover John McCain (#6) and the never-leaving death list (#9), the top two entries are actor Burt Reynolds, dying after a long life at 82 (and bringing along two exes) and rapper Mac Miller, gone too soon at 26 (bringing along an ex, #8, some loony fans turned against). Hip hop also makes itself present with Eminem (#10) and a young rapper he's now on a beef with (#7). The rest, we'll split them in threes: protesters are recognized (#3), executives are judged, and judges are protested; the US Open ends for women (#4) while European football starts a new tournament; TV is present through BET, Netflix, and Amazon Prime; India learns about a holiday inspiration, watches movies, and decriminalizes homosexuals; and the US celebrates a holiday watching scary (#5) and funny movies.

For the week of September 2 to 8, 2018, the 10 most popular articles on Wikipedia were:

Full report

The Court of the Rising Sun (September 9 to 15)
While incorporating some notable deaths, this week's iteration of the Top 25 Report is not entirely consumed by them, a nice change of pace from recent weeks. Rather, it is the action at Flushing Meadows, and a controversy embroiling tennis' biggest female name, which takes centre court. Further down, the list is populated with a veritable cornucopia of visual treats, from blockbuster releases to streaming delights. Google also contributes an engrossing entry, which almost excuses them for their surveillance of us all, while Eminem's return makes the list feel less empty. Finally, of course, the shadow of 9/11 weighs heavily over the report too. More diversity than recent reports ensures that this one is intriguing. Enjoy.

For the week of September 2 to 8, 2018, the 10 most popular articles on Wikipedia were:

Full report

Wikipedia Hits the Mat (September 16 to 22)
Some weeks are slow, but this one was so bad views-wise that for the first time since the report is topped by something with less than 800,000 views. And said #1 is a wrestling event, and there are some more violent sports entries as well (#8 and #14 are boxers, #15 and #20 American football players). Otherwise, readers sought predators of the sexual (#5, #7) and alien hunter kind (#6), rap arguments (#3), scary movies and TV, India spicing things up a bit with TV (#3) and cricket, movies in theaters (#10) or having their trailers released (#9), Elon Musk still on the news, and some stuff that you just can count on appearing—holidays, Netflix, and, of course, death (#2).

For the week of September 16 to 22, 2018, the 10 most popular articles on Wikipedia were:

Full report

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.