President-elect Obama

In political time, September 3 seems centuries ago. That's when I wrote a post about Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's wild popularity among Internet searchers. It seems no one could get enough of the newly minted GOP vice presidential candidate. As TIME Magazine's Bill Tancer reported then:

In the week ending Aug. 30, 2008, searches for Governor Palin were almost four times as popular as Obama searches, eight times as popular as McCain searches and over 10 times more popular than searches for Biden.

Palin may have lost this election, but according to a new Newsweek article, when Google unveiled its massive year-end Zeitgist report  (which is a must-read) yesterday, Sarah Palin was the world's fastest rising search term in 2008. And according to reporter Barrett Sheridan, the Alaska governor's popularity went beyond her own name:

She (Palin) coined or was somehow related to four of the election season's top 10 most popular buzzwords: "maverick," "bridge to nowhere," "lipstick [on a] pig," and "hockey mom." The most sought-after catchphrase, however, was "Joe the Plumber." Perhaps Joe should capitalize on his popularity and heed the calls for him to run for the House of Representatives in 2010.

And Palin affected Google searches in other ways. Take a look at this Fey Accompli:

For the most part, the list of most popular political news sources is predictable. Fox, CNN and ABC lead the way, with Web-only sites like The Drudge Report and The Huffington Post also making an appearance on the top 10 list. But the ninth most popular news site is a surprise: "Saturday Night Live." Tina Fey's spot-on Palin impression certainly deserves credit for giving the 33-year-old franchise renewed relevance. (Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, strangely, are nowhere to be found.)

In the end, though, Google searches reflected political reality: "Obama" was the most popular search term on Google this year in absolute terms.

Check out the whole report -- it's an amazing glimpse into what people around the world are searching for.

Barack Obama will be the 44th President of the United States of America.

Will Chicago be the new Washington? I worked for U.S. Senate Assistant Majority Leader Dick Durbin from 1995 to 2002. He is a brilliant leader, a masterful legislative tactician, a kind man. He is a key player in Obama's ascendancy to the Oval Office. In 2002, I worked on the campaign of Lisa Madigan for Attorney General of Illinois. She became the first female to hold that position and I worked for her in that office from 2003 to 2006. She is cut from the same cloth as Durbin - brilliant, connects with people, hardworking, destined for greater things.

Back to my point. Grant Park. Been there for Blues Fest and Taste of Chicago a million times. I have never seen the sea of humanity I saw tonight. Read the full text of Obama's remarks here.

Watch for more from the Windy City. Bonus points to anyone who knows why Chicago has the nickname. Let me know.