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Media

The Year’s Most Popular Tyee Stories

In 2023 our greatest hits included ferry woes, workplace fights, pandemic pleas and a revered music icon in the media glare.

David Beers 29 Dec 2023The Tyee

David Beers is the founding editor of The Tyee and serves as current editor-in-chief.

Cars lined up to board a BC ferry on a sunny day.
The most read Tyee story by British Columbians lifted the hatch on a troubled ferry system. A searching essay on Buffy Sainte-Marie’s identity was most read by all Tyee visitors. Photo via Shutterstock.

What’s been on your mind, dear readers? One way to tell is by reviewing which stories drew the most attention on The Tyee. This year’s subjects were pretty diverse. Long sailing waits and long COVID rated high. So did housing struggles in Vancouver, wild politics in Alberta, a resurging labour movement and whether green tech can save us. Oh, and you were extremely interested in Buffy Sainte-Marie.

We filtered our traffic numbers into two lists. First, Tyee stories most read by just folks in B.C. And then, Tyee stories most popular with all our readers. Here are the results.

TYEE STORIES MOST READ BY BRITISH COLUMBIANS

1. The Crisis at BC Ferries

Why no reservations frequently means long waits on the main routes. By Andrew MacLeod

2. His Video Sparked a Probe into Police Misconduct. Then the Traffic Stops Started

Tyler Nielsen has been followed and pulled over by police six times since going public with his video. By Jen St. Denis

3. Unmaking an Icon Named Buffy Sainte-Marie

As a child I was presented a Cree hero on a platform built by the media. With her image in doubt, how much is the media to blame? By Kevin Ward

4. Poof Goes the Electric Car Dream

Sputtering EV promises, in 13 scenes. And the true road to surviving the climate crisis. By Andrew Nikiforuk

5. Running on Empty: The BC Forestry Crash

The closure of a Prince George pulp mill is yet another warning we’re running out of trees. By Ben Parfitt

6. A Peek Inside the Mysterious Glass House on Deer Lake

How did this modernist gem end up on a public body of water in Burnaby? By Christopher Cheung

7. In Northern BC, the Case of the Mummified Mining Town

Why was the town of Kitsault suddenly abandoned, then preserved as a 1980s time capsule? By Amanda Follett Hosgood

8. We Interrupt This Mood of Denial to Update COVID’s Threat

Recent studies on long COVID and more show why, beyond vaccines, masks and air filters remain vital. By Andrew Nikiforuk

9. Why Modular Housing Stands Empty During Vancouver’s Homelessness Crisis

After pioneering the quick-build housing model, Vancouver is backing away from the strategy. By Jen St. Denis

10. BC to Tackle the Deadliest Workplace Killer

Worker advocates applaud move to reduce deaths from asbestos. By Zak Vescera

11. For Christy, Who Lived Fiercely and Died Precariously

At 60, she took her own life after receiving an eviction notice in a system that wasn’t designed for her. By Audrey Tung and Kendall Fraser

12. The Sugar War Gets Stickier

Ten weeks into a strike over longer shifts, the union opens a new front against Rogers in Vancouver. By Zak Vescera

13. We Now Face an Army of COVID Viruses

The pandemic has not ended. It is evolving, with big implications. Here are six. By Andrew Nikiforuk

14. BC Launches New Legal Action over Privatized Health Care

The government is seeking to prevent businesses from charging fees for access to doctors’ care. By Andrew MacLeod

15. Why a Top BC Heart Surgeon Quit for Politics

Dr. Sanjiv Gandhi saved children’s lives in the operating room. Now he is a deputy leader of the BC Greens. By Moira Wyton

16. The ‘Kraken’ Virus Is Here. What’s the Threat Level?

Emerging research on the COVID variant sounds alarms about contagiousness, severity and health-system impact. By Andrew Nikiforuk

17. BC Conservatives Reveal Their Ugly Approach to Democracy

When a man disrupted a school sports day with a transphobic outburst, the party faced a test. It failed. By Paul Willcocks

Frédérique Martineau, a woman in her 20s with short hair, smiles in front of a Starbucks.
In May we published a widely read story about Frédérique Martineau’s success forming the only union for Starbucks workers in Vancouver. The victory was short-lived, as the chain shut down her store and later she was fired from her job at a different Starbucks. Photo for The Tyee by Zak Vescera.

18. Meet the 20-Year-Old Who Unionized a Vancouver Starbucks

Secrecy, suspicion and Steelworkers. Inside an organizing drive at the anti-union coffee chain. By Zak Vescera

19. The Rising Chorus of Renewable Energy Skeptics

The green techno-dream is so vastly destructive, they say, ‘We have to come up with a different plan.’ By Andrew Nikiforuk

20. Atira Refuses to Fire CEO, Return $1.9 Million Surplus

Following a scathing government investigation, the housing provider says it’s done nothing wrong. By Jen St. Denis

21. ‘This Place Felt like a Torture Chamber’

Melanie Mark resigns as an NDP MLA and raises big questions about BC politics. Andrew MacLeod

Melanie Mark, a woman with short brown hair wearing a fringed leather coat with beadwork, stands before a microphone. Next to her is B.C. Premier David Eby, tall in a grey suit and tie. Behind Mark stands two older women wearing traditional Indigenous woven hats.
In February, Melanie Mark, who is Indigenous, wore her grandfather’s moose skin coat as she resigned as a BC NDP MLA, saying politics made her endure ‘character assassination’ and labelling the legislature a colonial institution ‘allergic’ to change. Photo for The Tyee by Andrew MacLeod.

22. Long COVID Has Never Been Taken Seriously. Here’s Where It Left Us

I’m 28 and one of many disabled from the pandemic. We need a public health plan for this. By Sophie Harrison

23. Why BC Needs to Bring Back Mask Protections

We can ignore the virus, but the virus won’t ignore us. By Lyne Filiatrault, Karina Zeidler and Protect Our Province BC

24. The Real Lessons from the Phoney Chinese Election Interference Scandal

Hyper-partisan politics and shoddy reporting created a dangerous frenzy. By Michael Harris

25. Devastating Report Cites BC Housing Mismanagement

Audit found missing information and frequent conflict of interest violations involving Atira. By Jen St. Denis and Andrew MacLeod

TYEE STORIES MOST READ BY ALL

1. Unmaking an Icon Named Buffy Sainte-Marie

As a child I was presented a Cree hero on a platform built by the media. With her image in doubt, how much is the media to blame? By Kevin Ward

2. His Video Sparked a Probe into Police Misconduct. Then the Traffic Stops Started

Tyler Nielsen has been followed and pulled over by police six times since going public with his video. By Jen St. Denis

3. The Crisis at BC Ferries

Why no reservations frequently means long waits on the main routes. By Andrew MacLeod

4. Poof Goes the Electric Car Dream

Sputtering EV promises, in 13 scenes. And the true road to surviving the climate crisis. By Andrew Nikiforuk

5. We Interrupt This Mood of Denial to Update COVID’s Threat

Recent studies on long COVID and more show why, beyond vaccines, masks and air filters remain vital. By Andrew Nikiforuk

6. The Bully Who Haunts Alberta’s Election

Inside the Kenney team’s torment of political ‘enemies’ and where his troll brigade has landed. A Tyee investigation. By Charles Rusnell

In a black and white image, a middle-aged white man in a suit in the foreground points as, in the background, a middle-aged white woman looks on.
People close to Jason Kenney’s Alberta government told The Tyee how his relentless attack strategy shaped the United Conservative Party Danielle Smith now leads. Composite image made by The Tyee from two photos by Jason Franson via the Canadian Press.

7. The Notley-Smith Debate, Fact-Checked

We tracked the claims. Alberta’s UCP leader was by far looser with the truth. By Brett McKay, David Slater and Charles Rusnell

8. The Real Lessons from the Phoney Chinese Election Interference Scandal

Hyper-partisan politics and shoddy reporting created a dangerous frenzy. By Michael Harris

9. The Sugar War Gets Stickier

Ten weeks into a strike over longer shifts, the union opens a new front against Rogers in Vancouver. By Zak Vescera

10. Alberta Justice Minister Accused of Privacy Breach in Law Society Hearing

Shandro’s testimony allegedly violated the privacy of a witness by referencing secrets he gained in an official role. By Charles Rusnell

11. That Didn’t Take Long. Danielle Smith’s First New Attack on Democracy

The premier plans to create an advisory ‘council of losers’ after UCP lost all 20 Edmonton seats. By David Climenhaga

12. We Now Face an Army of COVID Viruses

The pandemic has not ended. It is evolving, with big implications. Here are six. By Andrew Nikiforuk

13. How Damaging Is the Danielle Smith Recording?

While Alberta’s NDP demands an investigation, the ‘explosive’ video won’t dislodge UCP voters, says an expert. By Charles Rusnell

14. Danielle Smith Says the Darndest Things

A quick fact check of what Alberta’s premier told Matt Galloway on CBC’s ‘The Current’ last week. By Susan Jane Wright

15. ‘Weirder and Weirder’: Danielle Smith’s New Example for Canada

She won by taking petrostate populism to a new level. Where do we go from here? By Andrew Nikiforuk

16. Running on Empty: The BC Forestry Crash

The closure of a Prince George pulp mill is yet another warning we’re running out of trees. By Ben Parfitt

17. The Rising Chorus of Renewable Energy Skeptics

The green techno-dream is so vastly destructive, they say, ‘We have to come up with a different plan.’ By Andrew Nikiforuk

A curtain-framed window lights an empty room, coloured in oranges and beige, with a linoleum patterned floor and a doctor’s examining chair.
Readers were intrigued by our visit to a BC boom town abandoned four decades ago, its everyday realms, including this doctor’s office, frozen in time. Photo for The Tyee by Amanda Follett Hosgood.

18. In Northern BC, the Case of the Mummified Mining Town

Why was the town of Kitsault suddenly abandoned, then preserved as a 1980s time capsule? By Amanda Follett Hosgood

19. The ‘Kraken’ Virus Is Here. What’s the Threat Level?

Emerging research on the COVID variant sounds alarms about contagiousness, severity and health-system impact. By Andrew Nikiforuk

20. Why This Is Alberta’s Last Conservative Government

Calgary is changing and so is the province. That spells doom for the UCP coalition party. By Geoffrey Picketts

21. Why Modular Housing Stands Empty During Vancouver’s Homelessness Crisis

After pioneering the quick-build housing model, Vancouver is backing away from the strategy. By Jen St. Denis

22. For Christy, Who Lived Fiercely and Died Precariously

At 60, she took her own life after receiving an eviction notice in a system that wasn’t designed for her. By Audrey Tung and Kendall Fraser

23. A Peek Inside the Mysterious Glass House on Deer Lake

How did this modernist gem end up on a public body of water in Burnaby? By Christopher Cheung

24. Not Your Grandpa’s Conservative Party

Take Back Alberta, a key Danielle Smith backer, continues its UCP takeover. By David Climenhaga

25. He Trained Calgary Police Long After ‘Scam’ Warnings

Paid by the force, Robert Perkins used methods that can harm, say experts. His ‘college’ has a strip mall address. First of two. By Charles Rusnell

These are just a few dozen of more than 1,000 original Tyee stories we published in 2023. If you appreciate our independent coverage and that we keep it paywall-free so that everyone can have access to our journalism, please consider becoming a Tyee Builder by contributing to our fundraising campaign due to finish on Dec. 31.

Happy holidays, readers. Our comment threads will be closed until Jan. 2 to give our moderators a much-deserved break. See you in 2024! [Tyee]

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