The producer of Corona has expressed faith that its customers know the beer has nothing to do with the virus. Internet search data hints at confusion: Google Trends reports a 2,300% increase in searches for "corona beer virus" from Jan. 18 to Jan. 26, Business Insider reports. Those searchers may have meant "Wuhan coronavirus," which the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency on Thursday. "We believe, by and large, that consumers understand there's no linkage between the virus and our business," said a spokeswoman for Constellation Brands.
That's a big jump for "corona beer virus," but there are still far more searches for "beer" or "coronavirus" alone, per the Hill. And the increase could be self-fulfilling: Google automatically suggests particular searches based on terms in heavy use at the time. "Corona beer virus" made its move about the same time that searches using coronavirus terms rose, per Forbes. The results certainly look like internet confusion: The most popular questions Googled on Jan. 21 include "Is Corona deadly" and "How does Corona the beer spread?" (More coronavirus stories.)
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