Here is a truly amazing statistic: Cowboy State Daily published 6,000 original Wyoming-oriented news stories in 2024, which should have been a record of some kind.
But what was the biggest news story?
In my mind, the election of Donald Trump was the biggest story but our executive editor Jimmy Orr disagreed: “Our readers didn’t react much to our Trump winning Wyoming story. That’s because everyone knew he would win Wyoming. Our managing editor Greg Johnson said it best: It’s Dog Bites Man. Yes, it’s a huge story that Trump won the national election, of course. That’s the story of the year. It’s just that it was a foregone conclusion that he would win Wyoming. And we’re Wyoming focused.”
Well, shoot, he’s the boss. So, let’s review the other biggest stories:
If we go by the story that reached the most readers, it was about a young Pinedale Girl Scout getting fined $400 for selling cookies on city property. It was a crazy story but our best-read story. Plus, it was repeated around the world. Talk about human interest.
55 Million Page Views
Some other news organizations used to brag about getting between a million and 3 million page views per year. In 2024, Cowboy State Daily had 55 million! Yes, that number is correct.
Modern analytics in the digital world are very accurate and that is also how we could determine the best-read stories.
Our three editors, Orr, Johnson, and Justin George said our three biggest news stories were (drum roll, please):
First, that incident in Daniel where Cody Roberts ran down a wolf on a snowmobile. He then captured it, bound it up with duct tape, and took it in to a bar. He paraded it around and then took it out back and killed it.
That story by reporter Mark Heinz went round the world and there was even speculation that tourism would be hurt by all the bad publicity. Because of that event, the Division of Tourism even cancelled some ads promoting how the state has such an abundance of wildlife.
Roberts was given a small fine and there is expected to be more repercussions of this story during the upcoming legislative session.
Ultimately, Wyoming had a booming tourism year, according to reporter Renee Jean, so that story did not have a lasting impact, thankfully. It sure did give the state an international black eye, though.
Second, was the murder of Sheridan policeman Nevada Krinkee. The young father was gunned down while checking on a domestic violence incident.
The perpetrator William Lowery then had a long standoff with officers which ultimately involved the law enforcement folks destroying an innocent bystander’s home before slaying the cop-killer.
Krinkee had a huge funeral attended by law enforcement people from all over the region.
Third, were the never-ending wildfires that burned over 100,000 acres in the Sheridan area with the Elk Fire. Plus, there were other conflagrations around the state like the Pack Trail fire near Brooks Lake Lodge.
As this column goes to press, the Cowboy State is enduring an odd drought where very little moisture has occurred in places like Sheridan, Buffalo, Worland, Lander, and Riverton.
So, by consensus, were the top five stories Wolf torture, cop killing, wildfires, girl scout cookie fine, and Trump’s big win? What were the other big stories?
Volleyball Forfeits, Abortion Bans
Riverton-based reporter Clair McFarland thought the squabbles involving the University of Wyoming volleyball team forfeiting rather than playing a San Jose State volleyball team because it had a man playing on the team, who thought he was a woman. She also thought a statewide ban on Wyoming abortion rules by a Jackson judge ranked up there.
Reporter Andrew Rossi reported on an amazing cat that was lost in Yellowstone that ended up back in his California home months later. How many of that cat’s nine lives did he have to give up to do that?
Reporter Leo Wolfson wrote about the Freedom Caucus winning big in the August primary. It was a huge story for folks keeping tabs on the political winds in Wyoming. This upcoming session will be very different from past sessions because a vocal group that has always been in the minority is now in charge.
Energy and minerals always provide big news in the Cowboy State. The development of rare earths near Upton and Wheatland could mark a huge boom in these much-needed elements. The rare earths being mined will be a huge asset to the American economy since most of these are now imported from China.
The continued expansion of nuclear power in the state was also a big story. The big Bill Gates-backed nuclear reactor in Kemmerer got most of the headlines. There were lots of other projects occurring around the state, too, mainly involving uranium mining.
Normally at this time of the year we talk about prominent people who died – the death of Bobbi Brown Barrasso comes to mind. She was such a positive spirit of goodness for the state. She will be missed.
Old 399 Is No More
Around the world, people mourned the death of our most famous bear – Old 399. This sow was 28 years old when she was hit and killed by car in western Wyoming. She was the most photographed bear in Wyoming history and had a gigantic international following. Her death was a very big deal.
Pinedale’s Dave Bell shot some amazing photos of the Northern Lights. It was an amazing year for that phenomenon.
During November’s election, most of Wyoming’s Republicans were astonished and appalled to see both former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney and her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, endorse Democrat Kamala Harris for president. Liz even went on the campaign trail with Harris, which enraged Democrats and Republicans alike.
As the year ended, Cowboy State Daily’s Jen Kocher broke stories about new information about the famous DB Cooper mystery. Plus, we covered the occurrence of mysterious drones over Niobrara County.
As of right now, Cowboy State Daily has nearly 160,000 followers on Facebook and is the largest digital news operation in most of the Rocky Mountain Region. And, as Executive Editor Orr likes to point out, “We are just getting started!”
Coming next week, I will try to look ahead to 2025. Let me know what you think will be the big news stories of the upcoming year by reaching out to bill@cowboystatedaily.com.
Happy New Year!
