It's a shame, but the Daily News doesn't print during finals week. We are regular students with real finals (Sorry, you'll have to get your crossword somewhere else).
But we've had a great semester covering Ball State and the Muncie community and we wanted to share some of that coverage with you again during finals week.
So here are some of our (your) favorites: the most seen, shared and commented-on stories of fall 2015. The stories that made you laugh, do a double-take or were just so interesting they had to be shared.
Make sure to pick up our Year-in-Review on newsstands this week for a more news-oriented roundup of what happened in 2015.
Enjoy!
'Beautiful Luxurious Muncie': Youtuber satirizes hometown
Muncie, Muncie, Muncie. People love to rag on you, but really, we love you. This story was about the man behind the "Beautiful Luxurious Muncie" Youtube series. He goes by Ray Toffer in the video, but his real name is Stevie Hahn. It's a celebration of the videos that revel in the glory of Muncie. The feature was seen about 4,300 times on our site and shared about 100 times on Facebook.
Here's the video that started it all:
Ball State eliminates fee for excess credit hours
This semester, Ball State decided to stop charging students who stay more than four years for any extra credits they take past 144 credits. No wonder people got excited about this story. It was shared more than 100 times on Facebook from our post and was seen 3,275 times on our site.
Yik Yak users can still be traced, despite anonymous account
Quick web quiz – do you know what SEO stands for? It's search engine optimization. And basically, it means letting Google know what a page is about, so people that are looking for it can find it. If the Daily News has ever done anything right, it's the headline on this article.
Who knew how many people were searching for the phrase "Can Yik Yak users be traced"? We've been happy to answer that question for the 20,000 people who have visited the page over the past year. No matter what, it consistently gets views ever single week. Apparently, people still care about Yik Yak.
Muncie ranked top Indiana college town by WalletHub
Is Muncie really better than Bloomington? That's up to you to decide for yourself, but WalletHub seems to think so. They ranked Muncie the best college town in Indiana. Our brief on the ranking got a lot of attention. Our story was viewed 1,800 times and got around 100 comments on Facebook, in addition to driving some skeptical comments on Twitter.
@Havanah_SWAG @bsudailynews the wallethub. Sounds like a reputable source
— Garrett Goodbar (@GarrettGoodbar4) December 11, 2015
Students feel LaFollette complex is in need of an update
Ah, LaFollette. It's been a faithful home to so many freshmen since it opened in 1967. The complex, which houses around 1,900 students, hasn't been updated since the late '90s. Some residence think it looks a little shabby next to the sparkling new residence halls. This story got about 200 comments on Facebook and 1,500 views on our site.
Ten signs you are a Ball State student
How do you know you're really a Ball State student? We asked 10 students what it means and they really "redefined" it for us (ha ha, get it?). The story has been up for less than a week and it's already our second-most-viewed story of the semester.
Ball State students chanted “It’s a dress, not a yes, it’s a skirt, not a flirt!” as they marched down across campus in the 2015 SlutWalk, protesting the culture of slut shaming and victim blaming. Our gallery of the event got 240 likes on Facebook and was our top-viewed gallery of the semester.
Ball State pockets $1.2 million for Texas A&M game
Our Cardinals didn't stand a chance when they played Texas A&M, and no one thought they did. When mid-major schools like Ball State play big football schools like Texas A&M, it's called a guarantee game for the bigger team. And they pay the smaller teams to come play them. Big money. Like $1.2 million big. After Ball State's big loss, our story on the payout got about 1,900 views on our site.
Student group counters pro-life advocates and the opinion piece, Why did I see a dead baby today?
This year, when anti-abortion rights activists protested on campus with graphic images, Feminists for Action assembled near them and started a counter-protest. The news story on the event brought one student to write her opinion on the protests. Given the nature of the topic, it was a hot-button story on our website. Between the news story and opinion piece, there were more than 80 comments.
Ellen challenges Ball State's half-court shot winner
This short little story about one student's amazing luck made a big impact on the internet. The Daily News posted that Lemuel Turner, the freshman who won a semester of free tuition by making a half-court shot, was going to be on the Ellen Show. It was the top-viewed story of the semester and was viewed more than 13,000 times. The story was also picked up by other Indiana news outlets, Buzzfeed and USA Today.
We challenged Turner to see if he could make the shot again:
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‘The program is still alive:’ Wapahani baseball defeats Alexandria on Raiders’ special night
By Zach Carter / 3 hours agoAfter having multiple ceremonies before the game, Wapahani baseball defeated Alexandria 4-2. Raiders' starting pitcher Kayson Perdue threw a complete game with six strikeouts.
Self-immolation outside Manhattan courthouse where Trump trial is adjourned
By Staff Reports / 8 hours agoA person, who was later identified as Max Azzarello, self-immolated outside of the Manhattan courthouse where former president Donald Trump is on trial. Azzarello was extinguished and rushed away by emergency services. He is in critical condition at Weill Cornell Medicine - Burn Center, according to a press conference held by the New York Police Department (NYPD).
The closure of the historic Mark III Tap Room impacts Muncie’s LGBTQ+ community.
By Meghan Holt / 14 hours agoPatrons of the oldest gay bar in Indiana reflect on how it affected their lives.
