One blog, in a reference to TIME's Person of the Year, is already calling him Man of the Year — at least, that's how Death and Taxes is hailing Julian Assange.

If there were any doubt about the rising brand that is Assange and his whistleblowing site, Google search results (after the jump) show the off-the-chart spike in searches for WikiLeaks, the #1 search term in the US and around the globe since the explosive release of classified US Embassy cables that started on Nov. 28.

Despite pressure by the US government and others to silence WikiLeaks, since the week (Nov. 28-Dec. 5) following the release of the official US cables, "Wikileaks" has remained the top search term in the US, as measured by Google Insights. With founder Julian Assange's arrest today in the UK, Google's chart may need to go up to 11.Continue reading...

AGL to buy Nicor in huge natural-gas deal.

AT&T deals with failing grade by Consumer Reports.

Bank of America tops mobile banking apps in new study.

BP weighs sale of North Sea assets to help pay for Gulf clean-up.

Bright Food of China nears purchase of GNC.

DecorMyEyes Google-abuser arrested as Google boosts "nicer" advertisers.Continue reading...

Amazon booted WikiLeaks off its servers following political pressure, the whistleblowing site confirmed on Twitter. Bank of America, meanwhile, grapples with rumors it's next on the WikiLeaks hotseat as Julian Assange sets sights on corporate reputations.

Apple's iPhone takes top spot in US smartphone market.

Bloomberg's annual World AIDS Day breakfast disrupted by activist bagel protest.

EU proposes end to branded cigarettes.

USA makes final pitch (incl. Morgan Freeman, Bill Clinton) to host 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Google Doodles expand to mobile; clamps down on business trolling.

Groupon expands in Asia with three acquisitions ahead of Google deal.Continue reading...