Trending in 2018: What dominated the world of hashtags and Google searches this year

2018 could be described as a bit rough. Political scandals, out-of-control wildfires, concern over environmental damage and pollution, strikes and food-borne diseases all served to create their share of drama and trouble throughout this year. That’s not to say this year has been entirely cheerless, as we’ve also seen eco-friendly endeavours gain ground, avoided day zero in Cape Town and seen space travel reach new heights.

But let’s move past all that and take a look at the digital world in 2018. As in previous years, online media served to shed light on the state of the world. Social media and digital media often serve to capture the spirit of the times and reflect what users are interested in at any given time. Hashtags and Google often reflect the interests and needs of consumers. So, let’s take a look at the most commonly used hashtags as well as the search terms that were the most searched in 2018: