Indexes

The fight over health care legislation continued to dominate the news, but with a narrative twist that was tough on Barack Obama. And a crucial election kept the spotlight on Afghanistan, a conflict increasingly showing up in the headlines.

For the first week all year, health care was the leading topic of conversation among bloggers. And it was an often contentious conversation as liberals and conservatives accused each other of spreading untruths—and sometimes worse. On Twitter, technology-focused stories led the agenda as Iran dropped out of the top story list for the first time since the disputed June 12 elections.

Coverage of the debate over health care policy increased dramatically, dominating the news agenda last week. But with contentious shouting matches and overheated rhetoric driving the narrative, America’s news consumers may have gotten more heat than light.

Last week, for the first time in two months, the most discussed news story on Twitter was something other than unrest in Iran. Instead, it was Twitter itself and the outage the site faced on August 6. In the blogosphere, attention was focused on an unusual lawsuit. And on YouTube, the top videos involved rising political temperatures in the dog days of summer.

Last week, the health care debate remained the lead story as talk hosts argued about whether the confrontations between protestors and politicians were genuine or choreographed. And thanks to a dramatic prisoner release in North Korea, a former president made almost as much news as the current one.

The conversation in the blogosphere last week focused on two stories that challenged conventional wisdom about healthy food. On Twitter, the protests in Iran dominated at a level not seen since the unrest began in mid-June. And the most-viewed news video featured some on-air cable flirting.

The polarizing debate over health care policy was the No. 1 story for the second week in a row—with much of the coverage focused on the implications for Barack Obama. Meanwhile, economic news took a turn for the optimistic and the “birthers” got 15 minutes (and maybe more) in the media spotlight.

While the mainstream press focused on the health care battle last week, the online conversation centered on sobering survey results for President Obama. Bloggers also jumped into the racially charged “Skip” Gates case. Iran was again the hot Twitter topic and a confrontation between David Beckham and angry soccer fans led on YouTube.

With the political battle over health care legislation intensifying in Washington, that subject generated its highest level of coverage, by far, last week. But a remark by the president at the end of his health care press conference quickly changed the news agenda.

Contrary to the mainstream media focus on the Sotomayor confirmation hearings last week, social media reflected a very different news agenda. On blogs, Sarah Palin’s political future and views on energy policy dominated. On Twitter, Iran led the conversation for a fifth week in a row. And on YouTube, a controversy over a photo of President Obama was resolved.