#5. Colbert Bump
Similar to the Oprah effect on book sales, the boost in popularity ratings
a political candidate gets after appearing on The Colbert Report, such
as Ron Paul's stunning 100% increase in horse-race polls from 1% to 2% in
June. The fact that the term was coined by satirical genius and Report
host Stephen Colbert — who originated TIME.com's No. 1 buzzword last year,
"truthiness" — speaks to his continued impact on American political culture.
Fingers are crossed that the writers' strike ends in time to bring Colbert
back for the primaries.