When Stephen Colbert hosted the “Colbert Report” on Comedy Central, he often welcomed politicians to his show to help them get what he dubbed as the “Colbert Bump.”
Colbert claimed that an appearance on the “Colbert Report” would help candidates’ stature and fundraising. It turns out that another late night talk show might be giving candidates a bit of a bump as well.
During a five-hour span late Tuesday night, search results for Bernie Sanders went through the roof. Sanders, an independent senator from Vermont who is challenging Hillary Clinton for the 2016 Democratic Party presidential nomination, was on the “Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” Tuesday night.
While Sanders and Clinton have been neck-and-neck for popularity on Google throughout the last week, Sanders saw a huge bump over Clinton in the hours surrounding his appearance on the program.
Clinton also saw a small bump on Google during Sanders’ appearance with Fallon.
What are people searching about Bernie Sanders?
While Sanders has been a popular figure on the Internet, Clinton has held at least a 20-point lead in almost every national poll.
Justin Boggs is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @jjboggs.
