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The popular Miami-based account Only in Dade (@onlyinDADE) — known for sharing viral content with its more than two million followers — has vanished from Instagram.
The meme-account-turned-pseudo-media-page appears to have gone dark over the weekend, though it’s unclear why. Neither a spokesperson for the account nor one for Meta, Instagram’s parent company, responded to New Times’ requests for comment.
What began more than a decade ago as a Facebook meme page among a group of friends has since grown into something of a media empire with a news aggregation website and a headquarters in Miami.
As the Washington Post put it in a 2023 profile, Only in Dade has “become a media company that inks deals with local hospitals, UFC fighters and colleges, and catapulted one staffer to ‘Saturday Night Live’ fame” — referring to Marcello Hernández, who formerly hosted Only in Dade segments before grabbing the attention of talent agents and leaving to become a cast member on the show. In 2022, Miami music mogul Emilio Estefan purchased half of Only in Dade with plans to expand the venture into film, comedy and live events.
While some people have questioned whether Only in Dade represents the future of local news, its Instagram has been repeatedly criticized for ripping content from news outlets without credit, spreading misinformation, and, more recently, regularly churning out bizarre AI-generated images, including fabricated depictions of people in the act of crimes they’ve only been accused of.
Miamians, meanwhile, have been quick to dance on the account’s proverbial grave. Responding to a Reddit post in r/Miami asking, “Did Only in Dade get banned on IG?” dozens of users weighed in.
“I hope so. They’re so gross,” one wrote.
“One can only hope,” another replied.
“Yes, finally. Thank god,” wrote a third.
“Good riddance. Tired of them posting videos of people without their consent. Don’t care if it’s legal, it’s creepy,” another added.
This isn’t the first time the Instagram account has gone dark. In 2021, it was disabled for an “unknown reason,” according to NBC 6 South Florida. The creators said at the time that they were never told why.
