Nothing Compares 2 These Stories This Week

This week for BuzzFeed News, Adam Serwer dismantles the myth of the black Confederate soldier. Read that and these other great stories from BuzzFeed and around the web.

1. I met Prince. He told me something with a look. And I got it. — The Undefeated

Jamie Squire / Getty Images

Kelley L. Carter recounts a once-in-a-lifetime meeting with The Purple One. "He was well aware of his influence...But where he needed validation most — from a larger mainstream world that had deep pockets and controlled the trajectory of musical careers — he did not feel he got it." Read it — and other powerful stories about Prince — here.

2. The Secret History of the Photo at the Center of the Black Confederate Myth — BuzzFeed News

Courtesy Library of Congress

A 160-year-old tintype depicting Andrew Chandler and his slave Silas, both in Confederate uniform, has long been used as evidence that slaves willingly fought against the army that aimed to free them. Following the national backlash against Confederate iconography, Silas’s descendants share their story with Adam Serwer in order to debunk the myth once and for all. Read it at BuzzFeed News.

3. How "Nina" Became a Disaster Movie — BuzzFeed News

Suzanne Tenner

More than 11 years in the making, Nina has been accused of racist casting and wounded by behind-the-scenes fighting. The filmmakers tell Kate Aurthur how it all went so wrong. Read it at BuzzFeed News.

4. The Secret History of Tiger Woods — ESPN The Magazine

Richard Roberts for ESPN The Magazine

Wright Thompson traces the legendary golfer's fade from fame following his father's death — and the obsessions that have accompanied it. "Tiger is facing the reckoning that all young and powerful men face, the end of that youth and power, and a future spent figuring out how those things might be mourned and possibly replaced. This final comeback, if he ever gets healthy, will be his last." Read it at ESPN The Magazine.

5. Why Call Centers Might Be the Most Radical Workplaces in the Philippines — BuzzFeed News

Illustration by Hye Jin Chung for BuzzFeed News

You may not realize it, but the person on the other side of your customer service phone call might be transgender. On calls, Filipino workers can safely adopt women’s voices, names, and clothing, all while earning a decent wage. But, as Meredith Talusan finds, their success at work doesn’t protect them from the discrimination they face outside of it. Read it at BuzzFeed News.

6. When Rape Is Broadcast Live on the Internet — BuzzFeed News

Sian Butcher / BuzzFeed

Sexual assault, domestic abuse, and attempted murder are among the crimes recently captured on live video services. Rossalyn Warren uncovers one apparent incident of a rape aired in real time and asked what it means for the companies that host this content. Read it at BuzzFeed News.

7. How Lifetime Became One of the Best Places in Hollywood for Women — BuzzFeed Reader

James Dittiger / AE

Laura Goode chronicles the channel's growth from “guilty pleasure” to a critically acclaimed home for groundbreaking, feminist television. "To dismiss Lifetime’s brand, content, and viewership is to dismiss a media company for and by women worth almost $900 million." Read it at BuzzFeed Reader.

8. Only in Badu World — The Fader

Jody Rogac for The Fader

Vinson Cunningham profiles the iconic singer on the eve of her 45th birthday, as she flows between a home bursting with family, a birthing center, and a star-studded party. "Art, for Badu, begins with the individual voice, however heterodox." Read it at The Fader.

9. I Wore Pajamas to My Wedding, and It Was Perfect — BuzzFeed

Charlotte Gomez / BuzzFeed

Marisa Carroll reflects on the decision to marry at her fiancé's home in the wake of her mother-in-law's terminal illness. "There was no grand ballroom or second cousins, no DJ beyond Spotify chirping the Talking Heads out of tinny laptop speakers...But it felt like a real wedding. More importantly, it felt like ours." Read it at BuzzFeed.

Want to read more stories like this? Sign up for our Sunday features newsletter, and we'll send you a curated list of great things to read every week!