Panic and denial: The first case of the Ebola virus on US shores sent people into a tizzy, rushing to their keyboards to try and learn what they could.
The first case of the Ebola virus on US shores sent people into a tizzy, rushing to their keyboards to try and learn what they could. Despite Ebola being actually quite difficult to transmit, the news media readily drummed up the apocalypse from this single case. Overcome with anxiety, Wikipedia users returned to their safe havens; TV, video games, novels and celebrities.
For the full top 25 list, see WP:TOP25. See this section for an explanation of any exclusions.
As prepared by Serendipodous, for the week of 28 September – 4 October, 2014, the 25 most popular articles on Wikipedia, as determined from the report of the 5,000 most viewed pages, were:
| Rank | Article | Class | Views | Image | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ebola virus disease | 
|
1,153,294 |  |
This week, two weeks after an exasperated World Health Organization declared that the 2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak, already the largest in history by far, was spiralling out of control, the first American case was identified in Texas. This naturally sent people a bit panicky, even though it is virtually impossible for anyone to spread Ebola before they're symptomatic. |
| 2 | Amal Alamuddin | 
|
1,129,602 | The female population of the planet turned their furious gaze on this highly accomplished human rights lawyer, determined to ascertain whether she was truly good enough to take the most eligible bachelor on the planet away from them. | |
| 3 | 2014 Asian Games |
|
577,311 |  |
The 2014 Asian Games, a pan-Asian sporting event held every four years, commenced its 2014 edition in Incheon, South Korea on 19 September; the event will run through 4 October. The 2014 Games have 28 Olympic sports, as well as eight non-Olympic sports including baseball and sepak takraw (kick volleyball). The 2014 Asian Games medal table currently shows China at the 2014 Asian Games with a runaway lead, followed by South Korea, Japan, and Kazakhstan. |
| 4 | On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog | 
|
571,290 | This prescient 1993 cartoon from The New Yorker, which anticipated the rise of cyberstalking and virtual identity, gradually became an internet meme in its own right, as noted on a Reddit thread this week. | |
| 5 | George Clooney |
|
527,193 |  |
Sorry ladies, but the last bachelor star is now off the market, having married Amal Alamuddin (see above). |
| 6 | Gotham (TV series) |
|
460,188 |  |
This American TV series is yet another reboot of the Batman franchise, and debuted on 22 September 2014. |
| 7 | Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. |
|
433,869 |  |
Marvel Studios' expansion of its cinematic universe into television returned for its second season on 23 September. |
| 8 | Gone Girl (novel) |
|
418,892 | David Fincher's hit movie spurred interest in the novel on which it is based. | |
| 9 | Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor | 
|
409,547 | This open world action adventure game set in JRR Tolkien's Middle-earth was the biggest launch ever for a game set in that universe. | |
| 10 | Deaths in 2014 | 
|
400,447 |  |
The list of deaths in the current year is always a popular article. |
Discuss this story
We now can include mobile viewership User:West.andrew.g/Popular_pages Doc James (talk · contribs · email) (if I write on your page reply on mine) 02:42, 11 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]
'WTF Fun Facts'? Is that http://wtffunfact.com/ Does that site drive so many hits? If so, where is our article about it? John Vandenberg (chat) 04:25, 11 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]