Video: Top News Stories of 2010

The year in news — confounding, terrifying, and compelling.

Extreme weather and natural disasters brought life to a standstill throughout much of the world: earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, volcanic eruptions in Iceland, and record floods in parts of America and Asia. Manmade disasters in mining and oil drilling also inflicted tolls on the nation’s confidence in workplace standards and technological prowess.

As wrenching as the devastation was on the ground  (or in deep waters), the outpouring of global goodwill and human ingenuity kept up hope. And, in a troubled year, 33 miners who emerged after a record 68 days were triumphant testimony to a country’s single-minded devotion.

National pride was also at play in the world of sports. A stunning year started with the Winter Olympics, but the high point was the World Cup, when soccer fans, seasoned or fledgling, took a 30-day summer break to witness an exciting clash of nations.

On the domestic front, the clashes were also bruising. In American politics, the Obama White House pushed through sweeping reforms and stimulus dollars, but quite a few local governments and citizen groups resisted what they perceived as big government spending. A midterm election intensified the nose-to-nose politicking, and the November results promise a mix of gridlock, wrangling, excitement, and hope for the months ahead.

—Vera H-C Chan

Yahoo! Year in Review editorial lead for four years running, Senior Editor Vera H-C Chan dissects news events and search trends to share the why behind what’s hot on the Web.

The Yahoo! Year in Review videos are produced by the Original Video team at Yahoo! News. Executive producer is Anna Robertson, Emmy award-winning producer for “Good Morning America” and the current director of social media and original video at Yahoo! News.

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