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KPCC's top 10 most popular stories of 2015
Redlands Police stand on Center Street near Pine Avenue on Wednesday night, Dec. 2, 2015 as authorities serve a search warrant following a mass shooting inside the the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino on Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015.
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Maya Sugarman/KPCC
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Redlands Police stand near Center Street and Pine Avenue on Wednesday night, Dec. 2, 2015 as authorities serve a search warrant following a mass shooting inside the the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino on Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015.
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Maya Sugarman/KPCC
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Creator/Executive Producer Kurt Sutter speaks onstage during the "Sons of Anarchy" panel discussion at the FX portion of the 2013 Summer Television Critics Association tour - Day 10 at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on August 2, 2013 in Beverly Hills, California.
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Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images
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White Sage
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Maya Sugarman/KPCC
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Kurt Sutter's farewell ad to "The Bastard Executioner.
File photo: City of Vernon
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Eric Zassenhaus/KPCC
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EAST PORTERVILLE, CA - FEBRUARY 11: Volunteer firefighter, Christian Avalos loads bottled water into the bed of a truck for resident Donna Johnson to distribute as water wells supplying hundreds of residents remain dry in the fourth year of worsening drought on February 11, 2015 in East Porterville, California. Many local residents fill water tanks with free non-potable water for flushing toilets, bathing and laundering. Bottled water is used for drinking, cooking and washing dishes. Most of the wells of about 926 dry homes in Tulare County stopped flowing last summer when some 17 California communities ran out of water. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)
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David McNew/Getty Images
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Guns sit on a table during the announcement of a weekend gun buyback.
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LAPD HQ Official Twitter
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Finding affordable apartments is tough in Los Angeles, especially with its 2.7 percent vacancy rate.
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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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In another year of covering Southern California, KPCC's journalists have reported on everything from minimum wage to bottled water, crime to Maroon 5. Here are the top 10 most popular stories on KPCC's website from this past year.
1. Maroon 5 called out for faking 'Sugar' wedding crashing
Our most popular story this year was one that maintained readers' interests most of the year, as many who saw Maroon 5's "Sugar" video questioned exactly how real the wedding crashing allegedly going on in the video was. After looking into it, we found that it appeared that all but one of the weddings in the music video was likely staged.
2. LA residents need to make $33 an hour to afford the average apartment
Finding affordable apartments is tough in Los Angeles, especially with its 2.7 percent vacancy rate.
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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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Ben Bergman took a look this year at how much someone would have to make to afford the average apartment in Los Angeles County, compared with what people in different fields make. The answer: $33 an hour, more than double the highest minimum wage being proposed by L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti.
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3. Nestlé Waters CEO isn't stopping bottling in California
EAST PORTERVILLE, CA - FEBRUARY 11: Volunteer firefighter, Christian Avalos loads bottled water into the bed of a truck for resident Donna Johnson to distribute as water wells supplying hundreds of residents remain dry in the fourth year of worsening drought on February 11, 2015 in East Porterville, California. Many local residents fill water tanks with free non-potable water for flushing toilets, bathing and laundering. Bottled water is used for drinking, cooking and washing dishes. Most of the wells of about 926 dry homes in Tulare County stopped flowing last summer when some 17 California communities ran out of water. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)
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David McNew/Getty Images
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The CEO of Nestlé Waters North America made news when asked if he would consider moving the company's bottling operations out of California given the state's ongoing drought. The answer: "Absolutely not. In fact, if I could increase it, I would."
4. Police in California can seize guns without prior notice starting Jan. 1
Guns sit on a table during the announcement of a weekend gun buyback.
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LAPD HQ Official Twitter
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Already topping the list for the year despite coming out just days ago, people took interest in a new law that would allow police to seize people's guns for 21 days with a "gun violence" restraining order. The law was passed in the wake of 2014's UC Santa Barbara mass shooting, allowing for guns to be seized if someone is believed to be a threat.
5. Supermoon eclipse: What is it and where can you watch it around Los Angeles?
Why the moon is red during a lunar eclipse
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Stargazers were excited to see a supermoon eclipse, a rare event where the moon isn't only totally eclipsed, but that it also appears larger in the sky due to being closer in the moon's elliptical orbit, as well as being full. Sanden Totten broke down how to view the moon that was also in a state often referred to as a "blood moon."
6. Video from inside San Bernardino shooting location: 'I'll take a bullet before you do'
People were captivated by this video, where an officer was leading people to safety following the San Bernardino shooting that left 14 dead. His words: "Try to relax, try to relax. I'll take a bullet before you do, that's for damn sure."
7. San Bernardino shooting coverage, day 1
Redlands Police stand near Center Street and Pine Avenue on Wednesday night, Dec. 2, 2015 as authorities serve a search warrant following a mass shooting inside the the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino on Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015.
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Maya Sugarman/KPCC
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People followed the ongoing coverage of the San Bernardino shooting, which started in the morning with reports of an active shooter and continued late into the evening with the suspects being identified by authorities. The story was reported by numerous members of the KPCC team, from reporters to producers to digital staff, and this is the only story to have two spots in the top 10.
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8. The real 'True Detective,' season 2: What the heck is Vinci?
File photo: City of Vernon
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Eric Zassenhaus/KPCC
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Season 2 of "True Detective" was largely critically panned, but KPCC's Kevin Ferguson brought out the real-life stories that inspired the show online and through the podcast "Welcome To Vinci." The season was largely based on the real-life Southern California city of Vernon, and this post kicked off the week-by-week look, starting with real-life death and corruption.
9. Kurt Sutter bids a public farewell to 'The Bastard Executioner'
Creator/Executive Producer Kurt Sutter speaks onstage during the "Sons of Anarchy" panel discussion at the FX portion of the 2013 Summer Television Critics Association tour - Day 10 at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on August 2, 2013 in Beverly Hills, California.
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Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images
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Showrunner Kurt Sutter, the creator of "Sons of Anarchy" whose subsequent show, "The Bastard Executioner" failed to catch on, offered an unexpectedly gracious response to his show's cancelation. He took out an ad announcing the show's cancelation, writing, "The audience has spoken and unfortunately the word is, 'meh.'" Sutter broke down his decision and what the show meant to him with KPCC's "The Frame."
10. The 13 best Calif. native drought-tolerant plants for your garden
White Sage
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Maya Sugarman/KPCC
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With beautiful photography by KPCC's Maya Sugarman, we broke down plants that make sense during California's ongoing drought. It's also one of two drought stories to make the top 10. Check out the story to see photos of all the plants you may want to take a look at.
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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