Buckeyefirearms.org: Top 10 News Items of 2019

In 2019 we published approximately 300 news articles, along with other types of content. Over the years, we have published approximately 12,900 articles, covering elections, legislation, and all manner of events and information of interest to Second Amendment supporters.

Ours is an international audience. Beyond the U.S., we receive the most visits from Canada, United Kingdom, France, India, Australia, Germany, Brazil, Philippines and South Africa.

Just under 20% of visitors to our website are women. We have visitors of all ages, but most are aged 25 to 64, with 25-34 being the highest percentage of users (yes, the Millenials we're always told by the media hate gun rights). More than two-thirds of our visitors access our website on a mobile device or tablet.

We received the most visitors from the following ten cities, in order from 1 to 10: Columbus, Cincinnati, Chicago, Nashville, New York, Detroit, Cleveland, Dallas, Atlanta, and Washington D.C.

As content editor for BuckeyeFirearms.org, I always find it interesting to look back over the year to see which articles captured the most interest.

Here are the Top 10 news items on our site in 2019.

1. HB 228: What the New Ohio Gun Laws Mean to You
2. Drafting Error Causes Confusion over Shockwave Fix
3. Own a BANNED Bump Stock? Here's what the ATF wants you to do with it
4. Representatives Hood and Brinkman introduce HB 178 (Constitutional Carry, Concealed Weapons License & Remove Duty to Notify)
5. Ohio Attorney General Rejects Background Check Petition
6. Another state sees Constitutional Carry passed into law; Ohio continues to lag behind nation
7. Walmart Caves in to Pressure while Rural King Stand Firm for Gun Rights
8. City of Columbus Sues Ohio to Shred Constitutional Gun Rights
9. Ohio House Passes HB 86 Shockwave Error Fix
10. Ohio Senate Passes HB 86 Shockwave Error Fix; Bill headed to Governor's Desk

In 2018, passage of House Bill 228 was the top story, as the Ohio General Assembly came back during the holiday break and overrode Gov. John Kasich's veto, finally shifting the burden of proof from the accused to the prosecution. News about that bill continued to dominate in 2019, with four of the Top 10 news articles (#1, #2, #9, and #10) addressing the contents of the bill, as well as the fallout from an 11th hour drafting error that was erroneously inserted into the bill by the Legislative Services Commission.

The third most-read article of 2019 informed owners of bump stocks what to do with their banned devices, following news that President Trump had issued an order saying, in effect, "Mr. and Mrs. America, turn them all in."

Given the continued push to enact gun control in the wake of terrible mass killings, and gun rights advocates' own attempts to protect the right to bear arms for those who wish to defend themselves, it should come as no surprise that the 2019 Top 10 was dominated by articles covering those efforts through legislation, lawsuits, ballot initiatives and more.

In addition to being used as a frequent source by news outlets across the state, Buckeye Firearms Association spokespersons also appeared on regional, national and international news outlets including Great Britain's "Good Morning Britain," Channel4.com, The Evening Standard, The Guardian and The Times, as well as The Financial Times (FT.com), GQ Magazine, HuffPost.com, Pacific Standard Magazine, New York Times, RollCall.com, TheNewAmerican.com, and USA Today.

Our efforts made news with national Second Amendment-related media included America's 1st Freedom Magazine, AmmoLand.com, Guns.com, NRAFamily.org and NRATV.com.

What articles and topics will claim the top ten spots in 2020? What articles will make national (or international) news? Only time will tell!

Chad D. Baus served as Buckeye Firearms Association Secretary from 2013-2019. He is co-founder of BFA-PAC, and served as its Vice Chairman for 15 years. He is the editor of BuckeyeFirearms.org, which received the Outdoor Writers of Ohio 2013 Supporting Member Award for Best Website, and is also an NRA-certified firearms instructor.