According to Facebook, chatter on the social network concerning the Supreme Court’s ruling to overturn parts of the Defense of Marriage Act reached a fever pitch by early afternoon on Wednesday. And from the hours of 9 am EST to 4 pm EST, Facebook counted 4 million related mentions.
As you might expect, “DOMA” was the most popular terms yesterday, with “unconstitutional” coming in second. The latter saw a spike in mentions of almost 60,000%.
And for the first time with a major national event, Facebook was able to track uses of their “action-based” statuses – you know, the “feeling excited” tags complete with emoticons that we’ve been seeing since April.
Here’s what the map for people who said they were “feeling wonderful” following the decisions. As you might expect, California is the darkest yellow for the mood – the SCOTUS’ actions also made way for the dismissal of the state’s Prop 8 gay marriage ban.
Facebook as a company didn’t make a statement on the ruling, but there’s not much doubt as to where they stand on the issue. Facebook was part of the amicus brief that dozens of tech companies sent the U.S. Supreme Court before they heard the DOMA and Prop 8 cases – and in that brief they urged the SCOTUS to overturn DOMA.
Plus, Facebook is one of the most outspoken companies in the U.S. when it comes to protecting LGBT rights and fighting for LGBT causes.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg did make a personal statement on the rulings:
“I’m proud that our country is moving in the right direction, and I’m happy for so many of my friends and their families. #PrideConnectsUs — feeling proud,” he said.
