One of the advantages of an online format with an active community of commenters is that the interest in articles can be measured – both by the number of comments but also by the number of views. I can’t imagine anyone disputing that 2020 was an unusual year with the biggest local topic being the impact of the virus. For Cobourg that translated into how many visitors would we get on our beaches. But there was also a lot of interest in some other things. For example: Changes at the Mall, the Cannabis factory shutting down, Starbucks coming to Cobourg, Woodlawn as a Rehabilitation centre and more. Below is a list of the most popular posts as measured by views and comments.
2019 Popular posts as measured by Views
| Title | Views | Comments | Date Published |
| Northumberland Mall Changes | 10,655 | 55 | 17 January |
| Beach to Re-open on a Limited Basis * | 6,823 | 176 | 22 June |
| Few Visitors find Cobourg’s West Beach | 5,508 | 39 | 5 July |
| Beach Re-opening and Beach Crowds * | 5,367 | 176 | 25 August |
| Northumberland Covid-19 update | 4,869 | 10 | 28 October |
| Is Cannabis Factory leaving Cobourg? | 4,830 | 62 | 20 April |
| Police and CTA Disagree on Beach opening * | 4,126 | 193 | 25 May |
| Beach Closed Until August 31 | 4,112 | 132 | 1 June |
| Woodlawn as Rehabilitation Centre | 4,107 | 80 | 7 October |
| Update on Golden Plough Lodge | 4,061 | 14 | 5 June |
| Starbucks coming to Cobourg | 3,946 | 38 | 6 November |
| GO Bus Service to Cobourg | 3,801 | 53 | 15 January |
| A Quiet Day on Cobourg’s Waterfront | 3,750 | 45 | 1 August |
| Budget Meeting Disappointment | 3,742 | 121 | 9 December |
Notable for Number of Comments
| Title | Views | Comments | Date Published |
| When Will this End – Opinion | 2778 | 195 | 11 April |
| Police and CTA Disagree on Beach opening * | 4126 | 193 | 25 May |
| Beach Re-opening and Beach Crowds * | 5367 | 176 | 25 August |
| Beach to Re-open on a Limited Basis * | 6823 | 176 | 22 June |
| RFP Issued for Waterfront Changes | 3542 | 149 | 15 October |
| Can the Cost of Cobourg’s Services be reduced? | 2876 | 141 | 26 October |
* Popular as measured by both views and comments
Note that these numbers are as of December 28, 2020. Also notable is what we did NOT have as a news item – there was no problem with the high water levels that happened in 2017 and 2019.
Links
- Hot Topics in 2019 – 30 December 2019
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As a Cobourg native who lives far away in Nova Scotia, I look forward to reading your posts. Thanks so much for keeping me in touch with Cobourg. All the best! Dave
I agree! And my story is somewhat the reverse of yours. In 2014 I decided to move to Cobourg from Toronto, but the decision was made about a year before the actual move could take place. Visiting this site (and the sadly defunct Northumberland Today) during that year was great fun, and a good way to keep abreast of the goings on in what would end up becoming the best place I’ve ever lived. So thanks to John for running this site, and thanks to everyone in Cobourg for their part in creating a great community.
Like keeping up to date with your articles. Keep up the GOOD work
Danny Gray
Grafton
I agree I wonder if any if not all of our Council reads this LOCAL News site on a daily basis
if they did it would save the residents from trying to reach our council by mail or phone
to express the opinions that seem to be Ignored
Every last one of them Sandpiper. And I’ll wager most (if not all) of the bureaucrats, directors, chairs of boards (police, venture13 et all), etc.
Happy New Year everybody.
WHY would Danny’s statement get a thums down?
Like keeping up to date with your articles. Keep up the GOOD work
The ‘thumbs down’ for David, Danny, yourself I think is a response directed at John more than the individual comments themselves. For myself I truly believe that any community, anywhere would be pleased beyond belief to receive the service John provides to our community. We are fortunate. Happy New Year to all of those who comment and participate in this blog. Specifically though, Happy New Year to you Mr. Draper and to your family – stay well.
Thanks Gerinator and everyone else wishing me well. I do appreciate the good wishes.
We may not know who is giving TD. But I would hazard a guess that John being the WebMaster, would know. When I monitored another web page, I could see who did what. Nothing is completely invisible online.
The comment rating system is 100% anonymous – so I don’t know who or what is adding the single thumbs down to every comment – I view it as a bug! I do have info on who makes comments but I keep that confidential.
You Family & Friends Have A Healthy & Prosperous New Year & F***gett THUMB’S DOWN!
I stand corrected about my comment in this instance.
I’ve noticed that before. Everybody has a -1. I think there are trolls out there who get some joy from doing that. Sad. But how do we deal with that? We see that in politics often and in American politics all the time. Their lives must be very sad.