As I did last year, instead of having the staff write blurbs about themselves like this is some sort of painful, HR-mandated self-evaluation, for a look at the best Jezebel posts of the year, I had our staff nominate their own but said I would write about them. So here you go: half what they think, half what I think.
My Cat Is Dead, What a Relief
Rich Juzwiak nominated this piece, which I’ll say is perhaps the first piece of writing about a domesticated animal that truly touched me, one that went beyond love of an animal to speak to the greater (often taboo) relief that comes with loss.
Meet Reality Steve, the Man Who Spoils the Bachelor, and the Best Journalist Who Isn’t One
The Bachelor has been on for 20 seasons, and appears to be going nowhere. In this interview with professional spoiler Steve Carbone, I tried to figure out how they do what they do and suggest why it matters.
Lemonade Is Beyoncé’s Body and Blood
“Great art emerges at points of conflict and Beyoncé has realized this at a central time in her career,” mused Clover Hope about the entertainer of our time, who pushed music and art forward in ways that took us by surprise even though we were all watching for it.
Glimmering Polycottons, Knee-Length Shorts & Lightly Flashy Workwear at Thursday’s Basketball Games
On April 1, the staffs of Jezebel and Deadspin switched for a day—we wrote for their site and they wrote for ours. Here is one of Julianne Escobedo Shepherd’s offerings, which includes this gem: “I still don’t know why the Utah Jazz are called the Utah Jazz. I have been to Utah, unfortunately, and there appears to be no jazz there. They don’t even have beer.”
Eat, Pray, Tail: I Wore a Tail for 1 Week and Learned Nothing
What started as a piece of satire ended up becoming both much more and absolutely nothing else for Joanna Rothkopf, who can truly rock a tail.
Here’s What Happens When You Try and Track Down a Ted Cruz College Rumor
Ellie Shechet spent a good deal of time talking to Princeton graduates about an unprintable rumor, and discovered a lot of other tidbits in the meantime.
Am I Going to Write About Murdered Black People Forever?
Kara Brown, writing to her future self and to us all.
Why Do So Many Men Whisper ‘Hey’ After Fucking You?
This website’s last week being a part of an independent media company prompted the staff to explore their deepest and more profound questions, resulting in this query from Madeleine Davies.
Video Surfaces of Brad Pitt Making Out With Marion Cotillard
Gabrielle Bluestone got ya, as did the marketing team for Allied.
How the Deadly Narcotic Fentanyl Changed My Mother’s Life for the Better
Following the death of Prince, fentanyl began to receive more widespread coverage from those reporting about medical and drug news. Aimée Lutkin dug into what it has meant for her mother, in a story that fits outside the narrative largely being painted.
Hillary Clinton’s Grace Is Yours
It was the day after the election, and Kelly Stout managed to publish this.
Inside Superstar Machine
Anna Merlan consistently goes where few even think to, and every time comes out of it with things you’d never expect.
Men Are Talking
Stassa Edwards provides a withering examination of what “serious men” have to say when they “have serious things to talk about.”
Wow: One Man Grapples With the Terrible Gender Politics of BuzzFeed Video
Bobby Finger explored the Try Guys and more, who have won America over and taught me that they exist.
Anything a Police Department Posts to Facebook Is Propaganda
Brendan O’Connor, with the truth.
Ants
Emma Carmichael loves ants, and don’t ever let her forget it.