ThePostGame
Embarrassing Photo Of Spurs Players Leaked
A few days after the San Antonio Spurs of the NBA were fined $250,000 by the league for sitting their star players during a big game, a not-so-flattering photo of two of those players emerged. The image, likely taken on Halloween, shows Spurs All-Stars Tim Duncan and Tony Parker pointing toy guns to the head of someone dressed up as NBA referee Joey Crawford, the same referee who once ejected Duncan while he was sitting on the bench. The generally mild-mannered Spurs seem to have gotten themselves embroiled in quite a predicament.

SPIKE
Video Game Awards 2012 Voting
It’s safe to say video game enthusiasts are quite opinionated, as is evident from the fact that one of this week’s top shares was the voting page for SPIKE TV’s Video Game Awards, specifically the “character of the year” award. The awards took place on December 7, with Clap Trap from Borderlands 2 taking home the top honors.

Nielsen
Social Media Report 2012
At each year’s end, market research company Nielsen issues a report on the state of social media from the previous year. This year’s report was a top share for this week, gathering nearly 16,000 shares through Facebook and almost 10,000 re-tweets. Follow the link and take a look through the 15-page report full of pretty charts, graphics and diagrams. Some interesting nuggets: visits to Pinterest increased over 1,000 percent from 2011 while visits to Facebook dropped slightly(3 percent); almost ⅔ of people ages 18-24 use social media from the bathroom; social likes are the most common action taken after seeing a social ad.

Fandango
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey: Synopsis and Overview
Unless you’ve been living in a hobbit hole, you’re well aware (and presumably excited) that The Hobbit, Peter Jackson’s prequel to his Lord of the Rings trilogy, is coming out in theaters this week. Fans expressed their anticipation through thousands of online shares of the film’s Fandango page, which includes a synopsis and overview of the movie. The Hobbit’s Fandango page dwarfed (get it??) the pages of all other movies this week. We’re excited!

Mashable
Here Comes the First Real Alternative to iPhone and Android
With a provocative headline like that, it’s no wonder this article was a top share for the week. But after reading what follows the headline, you’ll see just why so many users found this article fascinating. It looks at a Finnish mobile startup called Jolla (yo-lah) and its new mobile operating system, Sailfish. While on the surface the OS looks similar to those of market leaders Apple and Google, as the post discusses, it’s actually very different and in some ways better. But a new operating system alone cannot credibly challenge Apple and Google, writes Mashable, but a vastly different business model can. Jolla is going after the rapidly expanding Chinese market, aiming to capture the millions of first-time smartphone users who are not predisposed to Apple or Google’s operating systems and thus more willing to try out Sailfish. Whether or not Jolla succeeds is up for debate, but it’s undeniable that they’re onto something here.

Dallas Morning News

Actor Larry Hagman, notorious as ‘Dallas’ villain J.R. Ewing, dies
When Larry Hagman, the actor who played J.R. Ewing on the TV show Dallas died late last week, the citizens of the city portrayed in the iconic show mourned. That much was evident in the number of times the Dallas Morning News’ piece on Hagman’s death was shared, more than any other online article. The story details Hagman’s life, focusing special attention to his role in Dallas and the cultural impact of his role.

CNSNews.com

Sandy-Ravaged New Jersey Families Face $6,933 Tax Hike in Fiscal Cliff Stalemate
New Jersey families left in the wake of Superstorm Sandy are generally lower-income families, which means they will see the highest tax increase as a percentage of their income (6.82 percent) if Congress doesn’t find a solution to the so-called “fiscal cliff,” according to analysis by the Tax Foundation. The Bush-era tax cuts are set to expire on December 31, meaning most folks will see an increase in their tax rates. However, writes CNSNews.com, those unfortunate souls in the Garden State that were affected by Sandy will be hit especially hard by the increase, at an average of $6,933 per four-person family.

Fandango

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 Synopsis and Overview
If you’ve got a 14 year-old sister, or happen to just love teenage vampire movies, you’re undoubtedly aware that the new Twilight movie came out recently. The online community expressed its admiration for those pale-faced youths and their blood-sucking ways, as the Fandango synopsis and overview page for the film was a top share this week. Recent reviews of the film, as expressed on the Fandango page, include phrases like, “the best movie ever,” “pretty surprised,” and “an easy…must go!”
Mashable

Late-Night Gadget Use Damages Your Sleep Cycle [INFOGRAPHIC]
If you’ve got a smartphone, and most of us do, odds are you spend your final waking hours texting, surfing the web or playing games on that phone. Why not, it’s right there next to your bed. According to OnlinePsychologyDegree.net, 95 percent of people browse the web, text or watch TV before going to bed, but doing so can disrupt sleep. An infographic posted on Mashable notes that two-hour exposure to light from electronic displays suppresses melatonin by about 22 percent, making it harder to fall and stay asleep. Advises the infographic, “when you go to bed, say goodnight to your technology, too.”
Daily Kos

Inside the Hostess Bankery
No that’s not a typo, “Bankery” is the unflattering moniker skeptical Wonder Bread employees have cast upon the now-defunct company for years, and this tell-all post from one such employee details the recent labor and salary struggles between Wonder Bread and its workers. The author says he’s been with the company for 14 years and loves it, but calls out a list of grievances, which include: “stolen” money from employee’s pensions, insider trading allegations and ludicrous backroom labor deals that benefit the company only.