Google revealed its most searched terms of 2017 on Wednesday, which in the U.S. included Hurricane Irma and Matt Lauer as well as other men accused of sexual misconduct this year.
The top search term of the year in the U.S. and globally was Hurricane Irma, a Category 4 hurricane that hit the coast of Florida in September.
Former "Today" show host Matt Lauer was the second most searched term in the U.S. because of the prominent journalist’s firing in November over sexual harassment allegations.
Musician Tom Petty, who died Oct. 2, ranked third in U.S. Google searches this year, and the Super Bowl took fourth place.
The Las Vegas shooting that killed 58 and wounded hundreds more was fifth.
Looking only at searches about people, three of the U.S. top 5 were related to the widespread sexual harassment allegations faced by many in Hollywood and Washington, D.C.: Lauer, producer Harvey Weinstein, and actor Kevin Spacey. Meghan Markle made the list at No. 2 because of her engagement to Prince Harry.
September’s solar eclipse was the seventh most popular U.S. search term, and the third among news searches.
Hurricane Harvey, which hit Texas in late August and caused massive flooding, was No. 8 on the list, and the fidget spinner, the top new toy of the year, was No. 10.
Globally, the iPhone 8 and iPhone X were numbers 2 and 3 on the most searched list. The Netflix show “13 Reasons Why,” which dealt with suicide, was No. 5, and Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington was No. 9 after he committed suicide in July.
Other top people searches globally included Gal Gadot, the actress who played Wonder Woman in the blockbuster movie, and first lady Melania Trump.
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