Editor’s note: WNCT will share out its top stories of 2022 in several categories over the next few days. The top stories were determined by overall page views from analytical numbers Google has put together.
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GREENVILLE, N.C. (WNCT) — While there were a number of national stories that took the spotlight in 2022, many of our top stories from readers were about things happening in the Southeast Region.
Tragic events primarily took the top spots with news out of Virginia, South Carolina and Tennessee. In fact, a few of these stories went viral and ended up with an amazing number of pageviews.
Using analytics from Google, we’ve come up with the top-viewed stories of 2022 below.
2022 in review: WNCT’s top local, state news
2022 in review: WNCT’s most-read sports stories
2022 in review: Our most popular videos
2022 year in review: Top entertainment stories
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WNCT has compiled its top ten most popular stories of 2022.
10. What are the street names of fentanyl? (11,907 pageviews)
There are several names out there for what’s being reported as illicitly manufactured fentanyl.
9. Couple delivers smallest ‘miracle’ baby ever in Tennessee hospital (12,001 pageviews)
Born 13 weeks early, baby Levi was brought into the world at 0.6 of a pound, the smallest baby to ever be admitted into the NICU at Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga, Tenn.
8. Coroner determines Vicky White’s cause of death (12,334 pageviews)
New details were released following the death investigation of Vicky White, the Alabama corrections officer who helped an inmate escape and later died back in May.
7. Georgia couple die in Gatlinburg crash (14,306 pageviews)
A Georgia couple died in January after the vehicle they were riding in ran off the roadway and overturned on a Gatlinburg, Tenn., road.
6. Man sentenced to 1,823 years in prison to be set free (14,410 pageviews)
When people first saw this story of Lawrence Stephens near the end of 2021, they were quite amazed. In fact, this story had over 10,000 pageviews just in the final days of 2021 and continued to draw attention in 2022.
5. Man sentenced to 20 years for dealing drugs in South Carolina (15,095 pageviews)
In May, a man in South Carolina was sentenced to 20 years in prison for drug distributing related charges in Greenwood, S.C.
4. 4 dead in South Carolina after crash (15,854 pageviews)
In late January, four people died in a morning head-on crash in Laurens County, S.C.
3. 2 found shot to death during welfare check at South Carolina home (23,259 pageviews)
Another of our top stories also happened in South Carolina in February. Two people were found shot to death during a welfare check in Greenwood County.
2. Newport News couple learns they were never legally married 26 years after ceremony (28,464 pageviews)
This story was one of the first ones published at WNCT.com in 2022. Back in 1995, Valerie and William Beverley found out their hustle and bustle of getting married ended up with one major hitch.
1. Man dead after alleged FBI breach attempt leads to standoff (86,878 pageviews)
A Nexstar story from our website went viral and was shared across multiple platforms. As a result, it easily became our most-viewed story of 2022. A man was killed after he allegedly tried to break into an FBI building in Kenwood, Ohio, leading to a standoff in Clinton County.
