In anticipation of the Super Bowl and the upcoming Boston-New York showdown, our thoughts have moved from Eli v. Tom to the fans themselves. Social-media analytics firm Colligent took a look at the Giants and Patriots fanbases and compared which brands and musicians the two cities were "mutually engaging" on Facebook, Twitter or Myspace. Basically what this means is that the firm not only looked at what artists and brands Pats and Giants fans liked and reached out to on social media but also, on the flipside, whether fans of those brands and musicians engaged either of those teams. Here's a rundown of the cultural preferences for each team.
Music
Patriots Fans Giants Fans
1. Steven Tyler 1. Joell Ortiz
2. Bret Michaels 2. DJ Envy
3. Sam Adams 3. Styles P
4. Rob Thomas 4. Jadakiss
5. Joey McIntyre 5. Bruce Springsteen
6. Lloyd Banks 6. Ghostface Killah
7. Jordan Knight 7. Q-Tip
8. Dropkick Murphys 8. Lloyd Banks
9. Travis Barker 9. RZA
10. Ice-T 10. Pusha T
Movies
Patriots Fans Giants Fans
1. The Other Guys 1. 30 Minutes or Less
2. Inglourious Basterds 2. The Green Hornet
3. Star Wars (Franchise) 3. Dolphin Tale
4. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World 4. Star Wars (Franchise)
5. The Muppets 5. Despicable Me
6. The Green Hornet 6. Zombieland
7. Cowboys & Aliens 7. Ghost Rider (Franchise)
8. Dolphin Tale 8. Our Idiot Brother
9. Captain America: The First Avenger 9. Rise of the Planet of the Apes
10. Rise of the Planet of the Apes 10. The Muppets
Brands
Patriots Fans Giants Fans
1. TD Garden 1. Adorama
2. Madden NFL 2. Madison Square Garden
3. Newbury Comics 3. StubHub!
4. Harpoon 4. Citibank
5. Dunkin' Donuts 5. Madden NFL
6. Mohegan Sun 6. Pepsi Max
7. Foxwoods Resort Casino/MGM 7. DirecTV
8. Boloco 8. PETCO
9. Friendly's 9. NY Metropolitan Transit Authority
10. EA Sports 10. Reebok
What's most interesting is the localism in Boston's brand choices. Smaller brands like Boston-based Harpoon craft beer and Boloco (a small Boston burrito franchise that's like a healthier version of Chipotle) are in the Patriot's column whereas all of the Giants' picks are for massive entities (with the exception of Adorama--a camera store--that is interestingly the #1 mutually engaged brand).
As for music, both cities are interacting with pretty, er, local talent. We know Boston's a fiercely proud city but you're still hanging on to Joey McIntyre and Jordan Knight? Really? And Giants fans are tweeting/Facebooking/Myspacing (does that still exist?) Joell Ortiz and DJ Envy but not Mr. Empire State of Mind himself, Jay-Z (is it because he's a supposed Jets fan)? Ultimately it's a pretty strong lean in favor of 80s hair bands and arena rock for Pats fans and hip-hop for Giants folks. Movies-wise, there was nothing terribly striking: it makes sense that the movies these fans most engage with skew toward the Action/Adventure genre with a few family-friendly flicks thrown in for good measure (it's kind of nice that the same folks who tweet about Ghostface Killah and Q-Tip may also watch Dolphin Tale).
Was there anything on these lists that surprised you? We, for one, were also surprised that the only artist that made both lists was Lloyd Banks. Go figure.