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Current Google Insights trends: Andres Montes, 'Balloon boy'

Relax News
Friday 23 October 2009 00:00 BST
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(AFP PHOTO/FOX NEWS CHANNEL)

Searches for the name of Spanish sports journalist Andrés Montes are topping the list of trending topics on Google Insights on October 23.

The famed football and NBA commentator was found dead at his home in Madrid on October 16. Despite suggestions that an autopsy has already been carried out, no further details about the cause of his death have appeared in the news. Montes was 53 years old at the time of his death.

The term "Balloon boy" has risen back up to the number two spot on the Google Insights list of terms with the most significant growth worldwide during the last week amidst reports that the Heene family may soon be hit with hefty fines for their helium balloon hoax.

On October 23, the Wall Street Journal reported that the father of the family, Richard Heene, may be facing a number of criminal charges including, "false reporting to authorities", "conspiracy", and "contributing to the delinquency of a minor."

The story of a young boy named Falcon Heene careering through the air in his parents' homemade helium balloon captured the hearts of TV audiences around the world on October 15. As news coverage grew, authorities desperately tried to rescue the stranded child -- who was later found to be hiding above the family's garage in a box.

Evidence suggests that the "newsworthy" event was just an elaborate hoax concocted by Richard Heene to gain worldwide publicity for his family and his tv ambitions.

The search terms with the most significant growth worldwide within the last seven days as measured by Google Insights, recorded on October 23 at 8:30 AM GMT are:

1. andres montes (Breakout)
2. balloon boy (+180%)
3. f1 (+100%)
4. quelle (+90%)
5. brzydula (+70%)
6. 4399 (+60%)
7. sahadan (+40%)
8. livescore (+40%)

*Breakout defines a search term that has experienced a change in growth greater than 5000 percent.

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