BuzzFeed Oz News shuts up shop today. Here are just some of our favourite stories from the past six years.
1. Let's start with the story that really put us on the map. In 2015, Mark Di Stefano revealed Twitter account @RealMarkLatham, which had been trolling women online, was in fact... really Mark Latham, the man who nearly became Australia's prime minister.
2. This joint investigation between BuzzFeed News and the ABC revealed asylum seekers with life-threatening medical conditions in offshore detention faced treatment delays so severe a whistleblower feared it could cost lives.
3. We saved Healthy Harold! The government had quietly cut funding... then rapidly backflipped after this report by Alice Workman.
4. This article tracked the spread of a false news story claiming that Anne Aly, Australia's first female Muslim woman MP, "refused" to lay a wreath at an Anzac Day service.
6. We really did have some great quizzes: Who Had A Worse 2016: You Or The Great Barrier Reef? (I think we can all agree that 2020 leaves 2016 in the shade!)
7. Also: How Many Of These Weird Australian Animals Can You Name? (Just trust us.)
8. This story showed how TikTokers are being exposed to videos that glorify eating disorders on the platform's "For You" page, which serves up clips from literally anybody.
9. Allan Clarke's investigation for BuzzFeed News and NITV uncovered new information about the 1988 death of Aboriginal teenager Mark Haines.
10. We revealed that a staffer in government minister Michaelia Cash's office tipped off journalists ahead of an Australian Federal Police raid on the Australian Worker's Union.
11. In this powerful essay, Amy McQuire argued that to celebrate Australia Day is to celebrate violence, and that the day "promotes a devastating amnesia" about the thousands of Aboriginal lives lost and land stolen.
12. We brought you scoops and features from the lengthy marriage equality debate, including this story from Lane Sainty about a very bizarre night inside the book launch of one of Australia's most notorious opponents of same-sex marriage.
13. Plus, we were nominated for a Walkley for this Twitter thread — yes, tweets really can be nominated for Walkleys — that kept everyone informed during an incredibly confusing time.
Here are the possible outcomes going forward...
14. We discovered the "most carnal, ferocious, liberating thing a man can do"...
15. ...and the actual scientific reason behind the terrible inspirational quotes you see on Instagram all the time.
16. We spotted in the 2016 budget lockup that the much-touted PaTH program would get young unemployed people to work for $4 an hour, shaping the conversation about the government's internship plan.
17. We fact-checked the most confusing parts of debates about reproductive rights in Queensland and New South Wales.
18. And made sure we documented the lived experiences of women along the way, like this Chinese-Australian woman who took footage showing picketers were offering women help with their visas if they didn't go ahead with abortions.
19. We revealed a devastating outbreak of "resignation syndrome", a rare psychological disorder characterised by loss of hope, among children who had been detained on Nauru by the Australian government for years.
20. Our emoji interview with then foreign minister Julie Bishop elicited this response about Vladimir Putin... and caused some drama in Senate estimates.
21. We brought you renters' rights coverage, including this nightmare story about a woman who was evicted after discovering her handyman was really... her landlord. Whaaaaaaat.
22. We made a hell of a lot of videos about important issues like privilege...
23. ...the rights of transgender kids...
24. ...and of course lots of #auspol stuff. Like this one about the wall around parliament house.
25. And this documentary about paying the rent to Aboriginal Australians for their land.
View this video on YouTube
26. We published this three-part investigation into the sudden and unexplained death of a young refugee detained by Australia on Nauru. Rakib Khan had fled violent persecution in Bangladesh over his relationship with another man. His family is still fighting for an inquest.
27. After the government voted for One Nation leader Pauline Hanson's "it's OK to be white" motion in parliament, they tried to cover their tracks by saying they had meant to vote against it, and it was an error. These emails, obtained by Josh Taylor through FOI, proved that wasn't true and that MPs were directed to vote in favour.
28. We kept people up to date on all things #auspol with our podcast Is It On... and who could forget ~gallery whispers~
29. Brad Esposito made the confusing policy around medicinal cannabis in Australia accessible to our readers with clear explanations and reporting on passionate personal testimony.
30. We published a big investigation into the failures of Australia's #MeToo movement.
31. We somehow obtained prize night documents from the '80s that reveal New South Wales premier Gladys Berejiklian was not in fact dux of her school.
32. In other scoops that involved obscure historical documents, we found old ship records proving One Nation senator Malcolm Roberts once travelled on a UK passport, drawing him into the dramatic dual citizenship crisis and eventually leading to him being booted out of parliament. (He was re-elected.)
33. Our photo editor showed you the many faces of Australia.
34. We wrote about sexual violence and justice, including this piece about the impacts of testifying in a gang-rape trial.
35. And covered the Geoffrey Rush defamation trial, Australia's first big #MeToo case.
36. We brought you stories from remote communities, including this deep dive into the fight against a "huge toxic time bomb" in the tiny town of Borroloola.
37. We kept hundreds of thousands of people up to date on what was fake news and what wasn't during Australia's unprecedented bushfire season with this comprehensive running fact-check.
Thank you so much for coming along for the ride!
