Deseret News | 2008 Top 10 Utah stories

2008 Top 10 Utah stories

December not only brings traditions of holiday celebrations, but the annual Deseret News' contest inviting readers to pick Utah's Top 10 stories of the year.

In the last 12 months, there have been plenty of choices, with 34 nominations culled from the headlines.

Readers tested their own news judgment against the newspaper's editors by ranking the stories they believed were the biggest of the year in Utah. Readers whose Top 10 picks matched closest with the choices of the Deseret News editors are the winners of the contest. Contest entries were first tested to see how many of the choices were in the editors' top ten. Then the lists were compared with the editors' rankings for exact matches.

Results for other years: 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003

2008 winners

1	Hoang Ha 7 stories, 2 exact

2	Dallas Lauchner 7 stories, 2 exact

3	Hilary Troutner 7 stories, 1 exact

4	Craig Free 7 stories, 1 exact

5	Javin Weaver 7 stories, 0 exact

6	Jason Petrovich 7 stories, 0 exact

7	Brent Springer 7 stories, 0 exact

8	Loni Stapley 7 stories, 0 exact

9	Joanna Guymon 7 stories, 0 exact

10	Kenneth Tom 6 stories, 2 exact

Deseret News editors' top 10 stories for 2008

1	LDS Church President Gordon Hinckley dies at 97; President Thomas S. Monson succeeds him.

2	Economic crisis grips Utah along with the rest of the nation, bringing difficulties to most sectors and people, from the construction industry, housing market, banks and government budgets to worsening conditions for the needy and the middle class.

3	Texas raid on the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints' Yearning for Zion Ranch casts an intense spotlight on the polygamous sect based on the Utah/Arizona border.

4	LDS Church involvement in the passage of California's Prop 8 amendment banning gay marriage leads to post-election protests, harsh words against the church and threats of a Utah boycott.

5	Former SLOC chief Mitt Romney makes an unsuccessful run for the Republican presidential nomination, raising millions of dollars in Utah and bringing scrutiny to his LDS religion.

6	University of Utah football team goes 12-0 to win the Mountain West Conference and a trip to the Sugar Bowl, becoming BCS busters for the second time in five years.

7	Gasoline prices rise to more than $4 per gallon but finish the year hovering near $1.50 a gallon.

8	David Archuleta of Murray finishes second in "American Idol."

9	After years of stops and starts, court battles and environmental objections, the Legacy Parkway in Davis County opens in September.

10	David Ragsdale guns down his wife in an LDS Church parking lot in Lehi.

Contest respondents' top 10 stories for 2008

1	LDS Church President Gordon Hinckley dies at 97; President Thomas S. Monson succeeds him. 162 points, 87.0% of ballots, (9), Editors' rank: 1

2

Economic crisis grips Utah along with the rest of the nation, bringing difficulties to most sectors and people, from the construction industry, housing market, banks and government budgets to worsening conditions for the needy and the middle class.
146 points, 78.3% of ballots, (10), Editors' rank: 2

3	LDS Church involvement in the passage of California's Prop 8 amendment banning gay marriage leads to post-election protests, harsh words against the church and threats of a Utah boycott. 134 points, 69.6% of ballots, (2), Editors' rank: 4

4	David Archuleta of Murray finishes second in "American Idol." 90 points, 69.6% of ballots, (1), Editors' rank: 8

5	Gasoline prices rise to more than $4 per gallon but finish the year hovering near $1.50 a gallon. 89 points, 82.6% of ballots, (1), Editors' rank: 7

6	University of Utah football team goes 12-0 to win the Mountain West Conference and a trip to the Sugar Bowl, becoming BCS busters for the second time in five years. 72 points, 69.6% of ballots, Editors' rank: 6

7	Texas raid on the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints' Yearning for Zion Ranch casts an intense spotlight on the polygamous sect based on the Utah/Arizona border. 64 points, 39.1% of ballots, Editors' rank: 3

8	Former SLOC chief Mitt Romney makes an unsuccessful run for the Republican presidential nomination, raising millions of dollars in Utah and bringing scrutiny to his LDS religion. 51 points, 39.1% of ballots, Editors' rank: 5

9	Three Utah counties -- Summit, Grand and Salt Lake -- vote for Democrat Barack Obama for president; exit polling indicates Utah is now the third-most Republican state in the country. 42 points, 30.4% of ballots

10	Homemade firework seriously injures Bridger Hunt; he and his family publicly forgive the Lehi man who built the explosive. 39 points, 39.1% of ballots

Stories are given 10 for a No. 1 ranking, 9 for No. 2 and so on, down to 1 for a 10th place ranking.
(First place votes in parentheses)

Latest comments