Tragedy strikes Australian independent media: newmatilda will cease to publish in a month. As the editorial states, the reasons are financial. Advertising has not risen to meet the losses from subscriptions.

The publication has gone from strength to strength in every other way, with readership doubling every year for the last three years. NM has consistently tackled the issues that are being overlooked, and rapidly become one of the few outlets for investigative journalism in a changing media climate.

I started writing for NM in its early days around 2005, and have always felt very loyal to the site. Not only because the editor, Marni Cordell, is a friend, but because the editorial vision, genuine support for media diversity and quality journalism, and humour have been such a wonderful staple in my media diet. I have also appreciated the fearlessness and willingness to take risks – with content, structure, and delivery. Plus they paid me. Which is important as hell.

As a writer, I have appreciated and certainly benefited from the opportunities to grow and develop offered by newmatilda. I have found writers there who I can trust to challenge me, make me think, or make me laugh. I have found a conversation there which I could not have found anywhere else.

There are now a few more kids on the block, with the drums and punches and whatnots. There is plenty of space for opinionated writing. I hope some of that space is staked out for a bit of depth too. Whatever the future of independent journalism, newmatilda has made a definitive mark, taking a strong stance for independence, investigation, accountability, and diversity. In the online world, where so much is about our preferences making profits for others, it has been wonderful to be a part of a project which has survived on integrity and ingenuity.

Of course, NM published the horoscopes. Because we didn’t see this coming, I have already moved them off this site. I might find a new home for them come June 25th, or I might stop writing them. Ideas appreciated.

It has been a great 5 years for me with newmatilda, and I don’t want this post to be an obituary – I want it to be a thankyou, and a call to arms. Let’s keep writing the difficult stories. Let’s take what works and learn from what doesn’t. I look forward to the next experiment.

This post has been cross-posted from jennifer mills.