Hello, everybody! As we near the conclusion of what can only be described as a dumpster fire of a year, we at FTF Media wanted to touch on some of the few highlights 2020 brought our way. The unwavering support that you all showed us this year as we began our growth as a media outlet means so much to us, whether it was listening to our shows, following our various podcast accounts or visiting this website to read what we had to say. Today, I wanted to take you through our ten highest viewed blog posts since our site went live in mid-May.
Enjoy!
Blogs 6-10
10. 'You Can Change Your Mind: How a Conservative, Evangelical Christian Became a Pro-Choice Progressive' by Carly (@cgreenbartlett) - 10/26/2020
Note from the Editor-In-Chief: I couldn't be more proud of Carly for sharing such a personal story with the world. About a week in advance of the 2020 Presidential Election, Carly took readers through the history and evolution of her belief and value systems, stressing that it's never too late to change your mind about the 'big stuff.' And, although the Election has both come and gone by now, her message is still important today. You can read Carly's piece here.
9. 'True Crime & Chill...The Blog? 10 Docs That'll Make Your Skin Crawl' by Gabby (@moneybagsgabs) - 7/21/2020
Note from the Editor-In-Chief: At this point, Gabby is no stranger to the FTF Media website, having bravely written about some very personal subject matter, touching on her passion for baseball and, of course, diving into her obsession with True Crime documentaries. In one of her first pieces on the site, Gabby made some tremendous recommendations for everyone. Looking for something new to binge in 2021? Check out Gabby's piece for some great picks!
8. 'Talon: An Original Story from FTF Media's Own Kristian!' by Kristian (@itsmeKristianG) - 10/20/2020
Note from the Editor-In-Chief: I've enjoyed getting to know Kristian so much this year and having the privilege of publishing one of her original stories on the FTF Media website is something that I don't take lightly. Kristian is a fantastic writer, as evidenced by the word picture she painted in her story, 'Talon.' Apparently she's been sitting on this story for YEARS, but not anymore. She's working on Part 3, so be sure to read Part 1 & Part 2 in the meantime!
7. 'Student Athletes' Collective Power Rises Through the Ashes of the College Football Season' by Candi (@Candi_Lee_Bell) - 8/14/2020
Note from the Editor-In-Chief: It should surprise absolutely no one that Candi put out one of our very best blogs this year in what was her FTF Media writing debut! We did wind up having a College Football season (albeit a messy one), but at the time of this post, it was looking unlikely that we would. Candi did a tremendous job pointing out the power that amateur athletes could display through organizing. You can read what Candi had to say here!
6. 'Welcome to the Club: An Ode to my 20's and a Look Ahead to the Next Chapter' by Mark (@MarkPiselli13) - 12/2/2020
Note from the Editor-In-Chief: I'm not going to lie, I was pretty surprised after running the numbers to see that I had made this list. I'm not used to people reading what I have to say; I wrote our first four posts as we were getting the site up and running, with said posts netting a combined 61 views total. But I'm grateful that people were interested in this post in particular, as it covered my personal growth over this past year. If you'd like, you can read my post here.
Blogs 1-5
5. 'The Cost(s) of Diabetes: Asking for Help for Myself and Others' by Haley (@CSIHALEY) - 11/10/2020
Note from the Editor-In-Chief: Haley is also no stranger to the FTF Media website, as she has opened up about a number of personal subjects to our readers. This particular post served to kick off her fundraiser for an insulin pump, which was a smashing success. Through this post and other efforts, Haley wound up raising enough for her pump and also excess funds for other diabetic charities. Haley is a total rockstar and you can read more of her story here.
4. 'Living With Type 1 Diabetes: Haley's Daily Journey' by Haley (@CSIHALEY) - 8/4/2020
Note from the Editor-In-Chief: Back-to-back entries for Haley on our countdown! She has become a regular contributor to the website at this point, but this post was actually Haley's very first piece for us. Thoroughly covering the story of her diagnosis and the events that have transpired since that time, Haley taught our readers just how much of an impact this disease has on diabetics all around the world. Haley's story can be found by clicking here.
3. '#VegasStrong - A Firsthand Account of a Tragic Night' by Bryce (friend of @CSIHALEY) - 9/15/2020
Note from the Editor-In-Chief: This was a guest piece from Bryce, a friend of Haley's who was present during the tragic Route 91 Harvest Music Festival shooting in Las Vegas back in October of 2017. While attacks like these are always chilling, reading the firsthand accounts of a frightened bystander can make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. It took a lot for Bryce to put this into words, so it would probably mean a lot to him if you read his story.
2. 'Why I'm on the Tank Train and You Should Be, Too' by Anna (@annaclick22) - 9/17/2020
Note from the Editor-In-Chief: In her first piece for the FTF Media Website, Anna took the time to try and talk some sense into Red Sox fans. It can be weird pulling for your favorite team to actually lose games, but when you have a chance to land a top of the rotation quality starting pitcher by doing so, it could be worthwhile. Get Anna's thoughts on which top end prospect the Red Sox could possibly wind up with in next year's MLB Draft by reading her piece here.
1. 'A Twisted Love Triangle: The Death of Seath Jackson' by Gabby (@moneybagsgabs) - 8/20/2020
Note from the Editor-In-Chief: Our highest viewed post in 2020 by an absolute LANDSLIDE is this late August piece from Gabby. Her account of the tragic murder of a young teenager named Seath Jackson has gotten so many views that, if you Google his name, you'll actually see Gabby's article pop up in the first page of search results! If you'd like to join the literal thousands of people who have read Gabby's thoughts on this tragedy, you can do so here.
So, there you have it! I'm so unbelievably proud of the progress that our website has made this year. As you clearly saw from the above list, our crew has written about a wide variety of subject matter and opened up quite a bit about their lives in the process. And this is just a fraction of the amazing content posted on our site. To this point, we have published nearly 80 articles from 20 different individual contributors. I couldn't be more grateful for the fantastic people who have gone out of their way to help grow our website this year and I hope they continue to share their thoughts moving forward. We appreciate the support from each and every one of our readers and listeners as well; we couldn't do it without you!
Have a Happy New Year, everyone!
- Mark (@MarkPiselli13)