Looking back: Our 5 most popular stories of 2024

Copper Courier readers in 2024 were most interested in stories on the election, reproductive rights, and housing in Arizona.

We’ve come to the end of yet another year, and it was—as always—a doozy. 

Political coverage topped our list of most-viewed stories in 2024, which comes as no surprise given the heated presidential election this year. 

Reproductive rights and housing were clearly important to our readers, as stories focusing on those issues made the list. 

Here are our top five stories with the most views from 2024:

VIDEO: Arizona Sen. Sonny Borrelli says women should use Aspirin between the knees as birth control

Our most-viewed story of the year was a video explainer from our chief political correspondent Camaron Stevenson that we posted to our website.

Democrats this year tried to pass a bill that would guarantee Arizonans a right to contraception in the state, but the Republican-majority Legislature prevented it from advancing. 

When speaking to the Arizona Mirror about the effort, Arizona Sen. Sonny Borrelli said “Like I said, Bayer Company invented aspirin. Put it between your knees,” implying that if a woman’s legs are closed, she can’t become pregnant.

In his video, Camaron explains why Democrats felt their bill was necessary, and how Borelli’s statement reinforces their point. 

We mapped out all 400 apartment complexes accused of rent price-fixing in Arizona

Roughly 10% of renters in Arizona have been impacted by an alleged price-fixing scheme involving over 400 apartment complexes throughout the state—and Camaron made a way for readers to find out if their landlord was involved.

He compiled a list of rental locations owned by the companies named in the suit and created a map of all 406 properties.

He also provided a link where renters can submit a confidential complaint about their landlord to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office.

This story was popular all year, as the lawsuit is ongoing, and it came in as our second-most popular post. 

It sure looks like Trump is paying off witnesses

President-elect Donald Trump’s court cases were also huge in the news this year, and they were the focus of our third-most popular story this year. 

One of our COURIER national writers, Sophie Boudreau, wrote this story about nine witnesses receiving hefty financial payouts, promotions, and other benefits, some at “delicate” moments during the cases, which was uncovered by ProPublica.

Legal experts told ProPublica that proving such tampering would be a significant challenge. In order to constitute a crime, prosecutors would have to prove that Trump and his team paid out raises, gave financial bonuses, or provided promotions with the explicit and express intent of influencing trial testimony. 

But despite these legal barriers, lawyers like former US attorney Barbara McQuade told ProPublica the pattern detected among Trump witnesses “feels very shady.” 

Rent monopoly crackdown continues as FBI raids corporate landlord for 18 Arizona properties

Another of Camaron’s housing stories made our list of most-viewed stories, coming in at No. 4. 

This one was about federal agents raiding a property management company operating in Arizona as part of an investigation into price-fixing rent.

Cortland, an Atlanta-based property management company, is one of 10 real estate conglomerates under investigation for creating a rental monopoly, resulting in rents across Arizona going up by more than 30% since 2022. 

The common thread between the 10 conglomerates is RealPages, which makes software the landlords used to determine the maximum amount rent could be raised. The landlords then raised rents in tandem, in a manner that Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has characterized as monopolistic.

Unsure about voting for judges in Arizona? Here’s some info that can help

Our fifth-most popular story was a voting guide meant to help Arizonans navigate the lengthy ballot this year. 

Community editor Jessica Swarner gathered links to several guides that helped provide information about judges on the ballot. 

Progress Arizona led a campaign to vote out Arizona Supreme Court Justices Bolick and King due to their vote in April to reinstate the state’s 1864 abortion ban, but both judges kept their jobs. 

Jess also shared information about Proposition 137, which would have taken away voters’ ability to weigh in on judges’ performance, essentially giving judges lifetime appointments. Voters did not approve this measure. 

Thank you to everyone who read our work this year—we’re looking forward to bringing you more news in 2025!