Maclean’s 10 Best Stories of 2024

Maclean’s most popular longform articles of 2024 were the ones that stoked big feelings and strong opinions in our readers. Christina Frangou’s investigation into the rise of private health care in Canada, for example, created a conversation about whether for-pay care, once taboo, has a place in the public system. Luc Rinaldi’s explosive look at the rocky rollout of classroom cellphone bans tapped into parents’ fears and frustrations. And Katrina Onstad’s story about Canada’s trillion-dollar wealth transfer hit a nerve with millennials waiting for their parents to die before they can achieve financial success. Here, our top 10 longform stories of 2024.

No. 10

How We Got to 41 Million

For decades, Canada has been a model of inclusive immigration. But over the last few years, the Liberals have admitted too many people, too fast. Why did no one see it coming?

BY STEPHEN MAHER

No. 9

The Incel Terrorist

Oguzhan Sert was 17 when he walked into a Toronto massage parlour and killed an employee with a sword. The Crown argued the attack wasn’t just murder, but an act of terror against women. The hard part would be proving it.

Lana Hall

NO. 8

Sober Nation

Sexy mocktails, zero-alcohol beer and boozeless bars are everywhere. Why it’s never been cooler (or easier) to go alcohol-free.

CAITLIN WALSH MILLER

No. 7

A Killer Among Them

In the spring of 2022, four women went missing within the same few blocks in downtown Winnipeg. This spring, the man accused of their murders will go on trial. So will the city they all called home.

Rachel Browne

NO. 6

Private Health Care Is Here

A growing number of Canadians pay out of pocket for MRIs, hip replacements, even family doctor visits. How a two-tiered system crept into Canada.

BY CHRISTINA FRANGOU

NO. 5

Quebec’s New French Revolution

When I moved to Montreal, it was a vibrant, multilingual metropolis. Now François Legault is waging war on English and on the cosmopolitanism that makes it Canada’s greatest city.

Mark Mann

NO. 4

The Great Airbnb Crackdown

Last year, a massive blaze consumed several illegal Airbnb units in Montreal and killed seven people. The tragedy shone a harsh light on the Wild West of Airbnb in Canadian cities—and the battle to regulate it has just begun.

By Caitlin Walsh Miller

NO. 3

The Rise of the One-and-Done Family

Many Canadian couples are having just one kid. Why a declining birth rate spells trouble for the country’s future.

By Courtney Shea

NO. 2

Schools vs. Screens

This fall, provinces from coast to coast confidently announced that they were banning phones in the classroom. It’s not going well.

LUC RINALDI

NO. 1

The Jackpot Generation

Canada is in the midst of the greatest wealth transfer of all time, as some $1 trillion passes from boomers to their millennial kids. How an inheritance-based economy will transform the country.

Katrina Onstad