It’s been a year of transitions, which means new faces, new traditions, anxieties, emergings. Our most popular stories reflect not only a university that has made a name for itself on the national stage, but one relentlessly committed to caring for, scrutinizing and bettering its own community too.
Below, you’ll find The Chronicle’s 20 most-read articles this year. Measured by total minutes of audience engagement, this list is just a small piece of what we publish each day — across four sections, our digital site, newsletters, and social media platforms. For more year in review content, check out our look back at Duke in 2022 and top stories of the year in Duke athletics.
20. Nugget, Duke's beloved golden retriever, dies at 11
By Milla Surjadi and Kathryn Thomas
The duo promenaded through Duke’s campus beginning in 2012, visiting almost every day since Upchurch retired in 2016. Read the story here.
19. What is going on with Joe Rogan, Neil Young and the #DeleteSpotify movement?
By Jules Kourelakos
What is more important: a corporation’s duty to protect free speech, or its duty to stop the spread of misinformation? Read the story here.
18. Remembering André Leon Talley: From growing up at Duke to pioneering the fashion world
By Anna Rebello
Looking back on Talley's roots in Duke’s own backyard reveals how this beloved icon came to be. Read the story here.
17. Duke admits record low 16.5% of Early Decision applicants to Class of 2027
By Milla Surjadi and Adway Wadekar
New class, new record low. Read the story here.
16. SATIRE: Students burn down Chapel after benches removed from campus
By Staff Reports
A Chomicle special on April Fools' Day. Read the story here.
15. COLUMN: This saga ends here
By Ooha Reddy
What defines you as a Duke student? Read the column here.
14. NC Senate passes bill that could legalize medical marijuana, but long road still ahead
By Jazper Lu
The North Carolina Senate took the first steps towards legalizing the use of medical marijuana throughout the state in early June with the passing of the Compassionate Care Act. Read the story here.
13. Duke admits 4.6% of regular decision applicants to Class of 2026
By Adway Wadekar
A slight increase from the Class of 2025’s record-low 4.3% acceptance rate for Regular Decision applicants, but lower than the Class of 2024’s 6% rate. Read the story here.
12. Why is North Carolina ranked as the worst state to work in?
By Zoe Spicer and Gargi Sahasrabudhe
Labor experts and unionized workers at Duke said they weren’t surprised by North Carolina’s low ranking. Read the story here.
11. Duke women’s basketball's loss to No. 3 UConn demonstrates that superstar players are not everything
By Andrew Long
In their first loss of the year, holding onto its star performers wasn't enough for Duke women's basketball. Read the story here.
10. Selection committee for student Commencement speech did not check for plagiarism, committee member says
By Milla Surjadi
After The Chronicle reported that the 2022 Commencement student speech bore close resemblance to a 2014 Harvard address, we took a look at how the speaker was selected. Read the story here.
9. Why did Russia invade Ukraine, and how will the war end? Former ambassador to Russia breaks down invasion in talk
By Jazper Lu
In March, the conflict in Ukraine had not gone according to Russia’s plan, the former U.S. ambassador to Russia said, but the way it would end was still uncertain. Read the story here.
8. Here are the results from the NC primary elections around Durham County
By Vishal Jammulapati
A rundown how the votes tallied up for candidates representing or serving in Durham County during the North Carolina primaries in May. Read the story here.
7. Five things for Duke men's basketball's Sweet 16 matchup against Texas Tech
By Rachael Kaplan
What readers needed to know before Coach K's 26th, and last, Sweet 16 matchup. Read the story here.
6. Takeaways from Duke men's basketball's Countdown to Craziness scrimmage
By Sasha Richie
On fresh faces, real winners and Countdown as a love letter. Read the story here.
5. Messages from the Duke faithful to Coach K
By Sasha Richie
Coach K touched countless people in his time with Duke men's basketball, so we talked to some. From stories to reflections, here’s what fans had to say. Read the story here.
4. Duke among 16 major U.S. universities accused of illegally colluding to limit student financial aid, per lawsuit
By Leah Boyd
In January, former students sued over a dozen major universities, including Duke, for alleged antitrust violations because of how they work together to determine financial aid. Duke filed a joint motion to dismiss the case in April. Read the story here.
3. Duke School of Medicine professor describes mandatory equity training as "Maoist political propaganda," refuses to attend
By Katie Tan
A Duke professor disputed with department members about mandatory training with the Office for Institutional Equity in May, calling the modules “left-wing Maoist political propaganda workshops." Read the story here.
2. COLUMN: I wish I hadn't come to Duke
By Spencer Chang
On dumb decisions, "The College Experience" and freshman year. Read the column here.
1. Student Commencement speech bears striking resemblance to 2014 Harvard student address
By Milla Surjadi
The Chronicle found that Duke's 2022 Commencement student address, given by Priya Parkash, contained similar phrases and motifs to one delivered at Harvard in 2014. Read the story here.
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Milla Surjadi is a Trinity junior and a diversity, equity and inclusion coordinator of The Chronicle's 119th volume. She was previously editor-in-chief for Volume 118.