In years past, we’ve usually expected news and engagement to pick up after Labor Day when Congress is back in session. But this year, news picked up even earlier due to the Supreme Court ruling over abortion, which allowed Texas’ outrageous SB 8 law to stand—and then let’s not forget the ongoing pandemic. After a drop in engagement in the spring and early summer, September marked the third month of increased engagement on the site.
August is typically a slower month here, but Daily Kos actually saw a rise in engagement in July and then again in August this year. There was plenty to cover and discuss with the delta variant spiking, Afghanistan and the many issues surrounding the ending of a 20-year war, and Hurricane Ida and its aftermath. We had a lot of stories about deaths of notable anti-vaxxers and anti-maskers, which have been occurring at a record pace.
July tends to be a slower month for us at Daily Kos: the sun is shining, summer is in full swing, vacations are happening, and our staff and readers are taking advantage. Despite all that, we’ve still got some new things brewing that I’d like to highlight in case you missed it last month.