Internet Activity Spikes After Casey Anthony Verdict

By Tonya Garcia on July 6, 2011 5:12 PM

The Casey Anthony verdict led to an avalanche of media coverage and Twitter responses.*

Crimson Hexagon tells Portfolio.com that there were 325,283 tweets about the trial yesterday, with hastags like #notguilty and #justiceforCaylee trending for some time. (Entenmann’s actually had a Twitter mishap yesterday when it sent out a tweet with the #notguilty hashtag.)

ABC News is also reporting major Internet activity: 1.2 million videos streamed from ABCNews.com between noon and 4 p.m., three times the previous month’s average; 1,000 tweets with the #ABCCasey hashtag; and five times the number of visits to the site during that four-hour time period versus the previous month. AllFacebook also has numbers showing the spike in updates once the verdict came in.

Broadcast media fared well also, with HLN showing its best ratings ever.

*There’s a media trend now where outlets cover the Twitter reactions of celebrities to everything from gossip to a court ruling. Note to media: If we care, we’ll follow them. Or if they a celeb says something particularly noteworthy, let us know. But please don’t waste your precious few resources gathering things like this detailed reaction from a Real Housewife of Atlanta cast member: “Kim Zolciak: WOW.”