Yahoo! has an interesting finding. Since the Japan Nuclear Crisis surfaced, keyword searches (i.e. Nuclear meltdown, Nuclear plant, Nuclear) increased 100 folds in Singapore. Press Release after the break.
Japan nuclear crisis raises awareness of nuclear power among APAC online users. Keyword searches increased by 100 folds
SEA users pay close attention to radiation issue; Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea users are concerned with energy resources
2011/04/21 SINGAPORE – The devastating earthquake and subsequent tsunami caused severe damage in Japan. The resulting crisis in Fukushima further heightened awareness around the world on nuclear disasters. According to Yahoo! APAC search keyword statistics, APAC countries followed the progress of the nuclear crisis very closely in the week following the crisis.
Keyword search volume related to nuclear crisis increased 784 times in Southeast Asian countries with Malaysia recording the highest at 78,400 per cent for its topmost keyword search “Japan nuclear”, within the first week of the nuclear crisis.
In Singapore, “Nuclear meltdown”, “Nuclear” and “Nuclear plant” were the most-searched keywords and grew by 9,300 per cent. Other environment-related searches such as “Global warming”, “Earth Hour” and “Nuclear radiation” saw close to 80 per cent increase among users.
The Japan nuclear crisis also shed new light on words that were once distant to us. A review of key search words revealed that “Nuclear leak”, “Radioactive pollution” and “Chernobyl disaster” ranked as top three hot searches in Southeast Asian countries.
The crisis also triggered searches on ‘harmful effects of radiation’, ‘protection against radioactive pollution’ and ‘advantages of nuclear power plant’, reflecting thoughts on topics beyond nuclear crisis to understand its far-reaching effects.
Aside from searching for key words, Indonesia saw a 10300 per cent jump in discussion threads relating to the “dangers of nuclear radiation” and “impact of nuclear radiation” while Malaysia reported on 8600 per cent increase in searches relating to “pros and cons of nuclear leak”. “Nuclear Meltdown” and “Nuclear Plant” dominated the search results for Singaporeans while Philippine users revisited “Chernobyl disaster pictures” causing 18000 per cent increase.
Henryl Moreno, Manager, Editorial for Search & Platforms in Southeast Asia, said, “The search volume for relevant keywords such as “nuclear power” and “radiation” increased significantly after Japan’s mega-earthquake. This highlights the concern among users for their own personal safety and the protection of the environment, as well as the need for governments to work together on international issues.”
The theme for Earth Day this year is “A Billion Acts of Green”. The goal is to raise the awareness of the one billion people on the Earth to participate in the actions of environmental protection. Through the act of sharing with each other, online users encourage more people to implement energy saving ideas in daily living.
Yahoo!, the premier digital media company, is focused on creating digital content and experiences that connect over 50 million users worldwide to what matters most to them. Given our reach on the web, detailed data through our search results and the aggregated user activity, Yahoo! is truly a barometer for worldwide consumer interests.
| Search word ranking | Taiwan | Hong Kong | South Korea | Singapore | Philippines | Malaysia | Vietnam | Indonesia |
| 1 | Nuclear dust | Earth day | Radiation | Nuclear meltdown | Chernobyl disaster pictures | Japan nuclear | Japan nuclear leak
|
Nuclear crisis |
| 2 | Solar energy board | Existing problems of environment | Climate change | Nuclear plant | Chernobyl disaster | Radiation exposure | Radioactive pollution | Japan nuclear |
| 3 | Radiation prevention | Save the earth | Renewable energy | Radiation | Bataan nuclear power plant | Nuclear pros and cons | Harmful effects of radiation | Danger of nuclear radiation |
| 4 | Nuclear power | Nuclear security summit | Biofuels | What is nuclear plant | Chernobyl nuclear power plant | Radiation | Nuclear dust | Chernobyl |
| 5 | Green energy resource | Why nuclear plant crisis alert people | Saving energy | Japan nuclear leak | Radiation side effects | Nuclear energy | Dealing with nuclear disaster | Nuclear radiation effect |
###
About Yahoo!
Yahoo! (NASDAQ:YHOO) is the premier digital media company, creating deeply personal digital experiences that keep more than half a billion people connected to what matters most to them, across devices and around the globe. That’s how we deliver your world, your way. And Yahoo!’s unique combination of Science + Art + Scale connects advertisers to the consumers who build their businesses. For more information, visit the pressroom (pressroom.yahoo.com) or the company’s blog, Yodel Anecdotal (yodel.yahoo.com).
[ad#boxlist]