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Here are Technical.ly Delaware’s most-read stories of 2018

From startup profiles to Delaware in the national spotlight: Here are the biggest stories of the year, ranked.

Here's what you were reading in 2018. (Photo by Pexels user Designecologist used under a Creative Commons license)

As we near the end of the year, let’s take stock of what our 2018 was like.

It’s been quite a year, hasn’t it? Chock full of political scandals, international conflict and disasters, both natural and unnatural. It’s also the year the Philadelphia Eagles won the Superbowl. 2018 brought us the Winter Olympics, with Delaware-trained Johnny Weir becoming even more legendary as he commentated with Tara Lipinski. There was the royal wedding and Cardi B and Black Panther.

In the tech world, the top stories included Facebook privacy breaches, Amazon’s flashy HQ2 project and SpaceX’s soaring rockets. All topics that have touched Delaware in one way or another. But we’re talking about Technical.ly Delaware’s biggest stories in 2018 – so here they are, based on your clicks:

10. How to join the June 30 immigration policy protests in Delaware

(By Holly Quinn, June 25.)

The nationwide Families Belong Together protests on June 30 included organized rallies in Wilmington and Dover. This post had the details.

A Families Belong Together rally in San Rafael, Calif., on June 20, 2018.

A Families Belong Together rally in San Rafael, Calif., on June 20, 2018. (Courtesy photo)

9. Midnight Oil becomes McConnell Development’s first brewery tenant

(By Holly Quinn, Feb. 1.)

The micro-brew scene in Delaware continued to grow in 2018. We took a tour of the Newark brewery with ties to 1313 Innovation shortly before it launched in February.

Midnight Oil cofounders TJ McGrath, Joe Stickel and Patrick Jones.

Midnight Oil cofounders TJ McGrath, Joe Stickel and Patrick Jones. (Courtesy photo)

8. 2018 realLIST highlights Delaware’s top 10 startups

(By Holly Quinn and Zack Seward, Jan. 22.)

We had high hopes for these ten startups this year. Many of them, including FundingFuel, NERDiT NOW, Danio Diary (Greenline, Inc), and No. 1 ranking WhyFly have exceeded expectations.

7. Nextdoor’s role in murder-suicide news coverage raises questions

(By Holly Quinn, May 1.)

We don’t normally cover the crime beat here at Technical.ly, but the controversy involving the use of screenshots from the Nextdoor app’s private Greenville, Delaware group in connection with a murder case brought up some legal and ethical questions worth exploring.

What's public and what's private when it comes to Nextdoor?

What’s public and what’s private when it comes to Nextdoor? (Courtesy photo)

6. This UD grad’s art business has taken off thanks to a click from Elon Musk

(By Holly Quinn, Feb. 26.)

A fun story about the power of a single Instagram like. (See, there was a Delaware hook to SpaceX).

5. Amazon has its own orchestra and it was founded by a University of Delaware grad

(Holly Quinn, Feb 15)

The big Amazon story of the year was, of course, HQ2 (which actually ended up being 2HQ2, but that’s another story). Here on Technical.ly Delaware, the most read Amazon story in 2018 was an interview with oboist Beau Curran, the University of Delaware alum who founded the Amazon Symphony Orchestra.

Beau Curran (right) at the Amazon Symphony Orchestra's Winter Concert, Thursday, Dec. 14, 2017, in Seattle, Wash.

4. Fireworks are legal in Delaware but here’s all the fine print

(Holly Quinn, July 2.)

Delaware made fireworks legal for the 4th of July this year! Sort of.

Sparklers — and other non-exploding, non airborne fireworks — are legal in Delaware on July 4, but not July 5.

3. ‘Shark Tank’–funded ‘ugly produce’ delivery startup debuts in Delaware Jan. 12

(Holly Quinn, Jan. 2.)

Shark Tank is one of network TV’s most popular shows, so if we can legit get it into a headline, we will. This early 2018 story covered Philly startup Hungry Harvest’s Delaware debut.

Save the veggies.

Yummy. (Courtesy photo)

2. We need to talk about why Jocelyn Harper left Girl Develop It

(Holly Quinn, Oct 3)

The most recent story on this list is also the second-most-read of the year. Capital One full-stack software developer Jocelyn Harper spoke out about leaving the nonprofit Girl Develop It after being dissatisfied with reaction to a racial incident in the organization. Since October, more women have spoken out, leading to the an ongoing #GDIStrike.

Jocelyn Harper. (Courtesy photo)

Jocelyn Harper. (Courtesy photo)

1. Netflix’s ‘Dirty Money’ exposes HSBC’s former New Castle office

(Holly Quinn, Jan. 30.)

In a Netflix documentary series about some seriously shady companies, Delaware comes up a few times, including a prominent mention of HSBC’s New Castle hub.

HSBC whistleblower Everett Stern. (Courtesy photo)

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