The 10 Most Popular Stories of 2008

2008 was a banner year for progressive media: we helped to boot conservatives from power and elect a President running on a promise of change. AlterNet played its part, with groundbreaking political and cultural stories -- some culled from the best progressive sources on the web and many more produced in-house.

Below, we've assembled the 10 most popular stories of the year; the articles you read, emailed, and sent flying around the Internet. They cover topics ranging from the scary -- and hilarious -- revelations about VP candidate Sarah Palin, to troop deployments in the U.S., to the ten worst moments of the Bush Presidency.

Here are AlterNet's 10 most popular stories of the year.

10. Don't Eat Anything That Doesn't Rot

Amy Goodman, Democracy Now

Consumers are getting duped by the food industry, paying the price with their health.

9. Top Ten Most Disturbing Facts and Impressions of Sarah Palin

By AlterNet Staff, AlterNet

It's not hard to stir up negative publicity when you advocate gunning down wolves from airplanes and deny the human causes of climate change.

8. Thousands of Troops Are Deployed on U.S. Streets Ready to Carry Out "Crowd Control"

By Naomi Wolf, AlterNet

Members of Congress were told they could face martial law if they didn't pass the bailout bill. This will not be the last time.

7. An Atheist Goes Undercover to Join the Flock of Mad Pastor John Hagee

By Matt Taibbi, RollingStone.com

In this excerpt from his new book, Matt Taibbi shares his experiences at a Hagee's boot camp for new converts.

6. What a Choice! Sex With a Sleaze for $100,000 or Writing for Peanuts

By Nicole McClelland, Mother Jones

Sites like SugarDaddy.com lure young women by offering them far more money than they could get in most professions. What's wrong with this picture?

5. The 10 Most Awesomely Bad Moments of the Bush Presidency

By Brad Reed, AlterNet

A shorter version of our long national nightmare.

4. Sleeping Around Craigslist

By Anna Reed, Lily Penza, East Bay Express

Two middle-aged women discover that casual sex can be anything but casual.

3. At JFK Airport, Denying Basic Rights Is Just Another Day at the Office

By Emily Feder, AlterNet

I was recently stopped by Homeland Security as I was returning from a trip to Syria. What I saw in the hours that followed shocked and disturbed me.

2. This Is Change? 20 Hawks, Clintonites and Neocons to Watch for in Obama's White House

By Jeremy Scahill, AlterNet

A who's who guide to the people poised to shape Obama's foreign policy.

1. 8 More Shocking Revelations About Sarah Palin

By Isaac Fitzgerald, Tana Ganeva, AlterNet

More skeletons come out of Palin's closet.