Top10 Rankings 2013 Summary Report

Research Note: World Leader Rankings on Twitter December 2013 4 The Top 10 Rankings for 2013 The heads of state in the Top 10 list shifted since 2012 seeing one thundering new entrant from the President of Indonesia and the loss of a Twitter stalwart, President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela. PRESIDENT OBAMA again maintained the top spot of all world leaders, with a vast 40 million followers, adding 16 million followers in one year. In January 2013, there were 1.1 million inauguration-related tweets sent out during Obama’s inauguration ceremony, according to Twitter’s government and politics team. This is 13 times more than the 82,392 sent out in 2009 during Obama’s first inauguration. In the fall of 2013 when the U.S. government shut down due to a budget impasse, it lasted 16 days and generated millions of tweets. President Obama tweeted on September 30, “A government shutdown will have a real impact on real people right away—and the House is hours away from forcing one. #EnoughAlready.” During the shutdown, Twitter became a megaphone for politicians airing their frustrations. PRESIDENT SUSILO BAMBANG YUDHOYONO OF INDONESIA was a new entrant to the top 10, grabbing the #2 spot formerly held by President Hugo Chávez. Joining Twitter in March 2013, President Yudhoyono is now very connected to his populace with nearly 4.2 million followers. Commonly referred to as SBY, and the first directly elected president of Indonesia, he is often recognized as a champion of anti-radicalization efforts who is strengthening democracy in the world's most populous Islamic country. SBY’s decision to join Twitter was based on his wish to “give more substance to true democracy” and build trust among the Indonesian people. #1 #2

Top10 Rankings 2013 Summary Report

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