Social Wit List: July 2018

In July, TF1’s Les Bleus 2018: Au coeur de l’épopée russe stirred up the most buzz on social media of all the new programs to launch globally, according to The WIT.

In the ranking of the top ten most-buzzed-about new shows in social media last month, Les Bleus 2018: Au coeur de l’épopée russe in France was number one, with around 141,000 tweets. The documentary looks back at the French football team’s journey during the World Cup in Russia, from the first game to their victory over Croatia in the final. Viewers tweeting about the broadcast were #FeelingProud and even got #GooseBumps, and were commenting on the #AmazingInsightIntoTheFrenchTeam.

Brazil’s TV Globo debuted Só Toca Top to around 99,000 Facebook and Twitter comments. The musical entertainment show, hosted by singer Luan Santana and actress Fernanda Souza, ranks the biggest hits, with famous singers and bands as guests. Even though some viewers thought it was #MoreOfTheSame, they found the show #FunNonetheless because of the #GreatPerformances.

La Academia on Azteca 1 in Mexico saw some 86,000 tweets with its debut. In the new version of the musical talent search that aired on the channel from 2002 to 2012, aspiring singers live in the same house as they train to become stars. There were #HighExpectations from the audience, which had #SoManyMemories from the original. Social media was buzzing about the #HighProfileJudges but #NotSoTalentedContestants.

There were around 64,000 social media comments about the launch of O tempo não para on Brazil’s TV Globo. The telenovela is about a 19th-century family frozen in the ice after an accident at the North Pole who wake up in the present, on a beach in Rio de Janeiro, when the ice melts. Viewers thought it was #FunToWatch and were #LovingTheSoundtrack. The #Surreal debut episode left the audience wanting more: #CantWaitForTheFollowingEpisodes.

The launch of Who Is America? on Showtime in the U.S. garnered around 47,000 tweets. The satirical series from comedian Sacha Baron Cohen explores the diverse individuals, from the infamous to the unknown, across the political and cultural spectrums in the United States of America. Many of the people tweeting about the show thought it was #Hilarious but noted that #TheTruthIsScary, and were buzzing that there was #SoMuchAbsurdity and gave #KudosForExposingTheCynicismInPolitics.

Paramount Network in the U.S. aired Rest in Power: The Trayvon Martin Story, which saw some 36,000 comments on social media. The follow-up to TIME: The Kalief Browder Story, which aired on Spike TV in 2017, chronicles the story of the unarmed 17-year-old who was shot and killed by neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in Florida in 2012. The audience was moved by the #Touching and #PowerfulDocumentary, which highlights a story that many have pledged #WeWillNeverForget.

Canta Comigo premiered on Rede Record in Brazil to approximately 30,000 tweets. A local adaptation of the format All Together Now, the singing competition in each episode sees a range of talented performers take to the stage to perform in front of The 100, an audience of great singers with big voices and even bigger opinions. While many of the viewers tweeting found the show #Entertaining and were even #SingingAlong, they were questioning #WhoAreTheseJudges and wondering #WillSomeoneMakeAll100Stand.

HISTORY in the U.S. aired the one-off live event Evel Live, which drummed up some 22,000 comments on Facebook and Twitter. The broadcast saw motorsports icon Travis Pastrana honoring Evel Knievel by attempting three of his most dangerous feats in Las Vegas. The audience tweeting at home said they were #GluedToMyScreen with the #AmazingStunts, though noted there was #TooMuchTalk and #NotEnoughAction.

Record TV in Brazil launched Jesus, a biblical telenovela about the people who knew Jesus Christ, and around 19,000 tweets accompanied the debut episode. Buzz about the #SuperProduction was that it was #SlowPaced but touched on #CurrentIssues and had the audience #Hooked.

HBO’s debut of Sharp Objects in the U.S. had around 15,000 comments on Facebook and Twitter. The adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s thriller novel of the same name focuses on a reporter who, fresh from a brief stay at a psych hospital, is sent to her small hometown to cover the murders of two preteen girls. Viewers were #ExcitedAboutTheTVAdaptation and were #LovingTheDarkVibe and #ImpressedWithAmyAdamsPerformance.

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