News-Top2020-12-31-2020
In a year defined by a pandemic, it’s no surprise coverage of COVID-19 tops our list of the most read articles of 2020.
Staff writer Dylan Brogan’s April 12 article “When should ‘Safer at Home’ end?” documented the early pushback by Republican lawmakers and the state’s largest business lobby against Gov. Tony Evers’ statewide order that closed non-essential businesses and restricted travel. State Sen. Duey Stroebel (R-Cedarburg) argued at the time that “the trajectory of cases and deaths in Wisconsin is many times lower than the initial projections.”
Also among our top reads was Brogan’s coverage of an April 24 protest at the state Capitol against Evers extending the “Safer at Home” order. Many of the protesters downplayed the severity of the virus, some alleging the coronavirus was simply “fake news.” One protester told Brogan, “People need to be able to see through the smoke of lies that they are being fed.”
The Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down “Safer at Home” on May 26 after a legal challenge from the Republican-controlled Legislature. A patchwork of local orders remained in place but the spread of COVID-19 increased throughout the summer before skyrocketing this fall. By year’s end, more than 480,000 people in Wisconsin had tested positive for COVID-19 and 4,859 people had died.
As we adjusted to a new COVID world, thousands of readers sought out features editor Linda Falkenstein’s “Open for takeout!” article, which she diligently updated for months. Falkenstein wins best headline of the year for her October story, “The winter of our tent,” which reported how local restaurants were providing COVID-safe dining with outdoor patios and heaters. This also proved a helpful and popular resource for our readers.
Citizen Dave struck a nerve with his Sept. 22 column, “Thompson and Blank need to go.” The opinion piece argued that UW System President Tommy Thompson and UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank’s decision to open state campuses was “reckless” and likely contributing to the rapid rise in positive COVID cases. Dave also has been dabbling in satire more recently. His Dec. 2 post, “Trump demands refund for Wisconsin recount” got our readers’ attention and while parody, doesn’t seem too far-fetched for the outgoing president.
The other big news of the year were the weeks of street demonstrations in Madison after the death of George Floyd caused by a Minneapolis police officer in May and the police shooting of Kenosha’s Jacob Blake in August. Brogan wrote seven articles chronicling the historic protests and civil unrest. “This is not a riot, this is a revolution” made it into our top articles of 2020 as did “Statues toppled, senator punched.” His piece “‘Wake up Madison’” on young Black organizers leading the movement also was a top read.
One story from the before times also sneaked into our most-read of 2020 list. In “Nudes after noon,” Brogan detailed a lesser known tradition of Bennett’s Meadowood Country Club — famous for its “Porn in the Morn” weekend breakfast. Each January for years, the tavern had hosted an “all female revue” featuring nude dancers which staff insisted was legal under its adult entertainment license.
Like most years, our events guide received the most page views on our website in 2020, even with most in-person events being cancelled. That’s because readers continued to be kept informed of countless virtual get-togethers, thanks to calendar editor Bob Koch, who meticulously curates and updates our calendar listings.
The guide, our arts and food stories, opinion section and local news coverage will continue in 2021, thanks to the loyal support of readers like you. In our minds, that’s Isthmus’ top story of 2020.
