The Betoota Advocate is blasted by Aussies over ‘disrespectful’ Instagram post about Liam Payne’s death

The Betoota Advocate has been criticized by Australians after posting a ‘disrespectful’ meme about the death of Liam Payne.

The satirical news website, known for its mockery of current events, shared a message on Instagram on Thursday, shortly after news broke that the One Direction star had died at the age of 31 in a Buenos Aires hotel.

The meme was captioned “Nation’s millennial women arrive at work with mascara smeared” and featured a stock photo of a sobbing young woman.

“Across Australia, women in their late 20s are arriving at their workplace today with smeared mascara and red eyes,” the message read, before giving details of Payne’s death.

‘Employers, boyfriends, husbands and fathers are advised to proceed with caution today – as millennial women enter the early stages of grief in their lives.

‘The partners of these women are urged to be particularly careful not to feel jealous or inadequate when faced with the fact that they will never fulfill the girls’ ambitions of marrying a boyishly handsome British pop singer.’

But the post did not go down well with many of the Betoota Advocate’s one million followers, with some demanding it be removed and others saying it was ‘too early’ to make jokes.

‘He died. He had a life and a child. Please have some respect,” one person commented.

Many commentators condemned the satirical news site for the “disrespectful” post in the comments

‘Wow. Double hit of misogyny and disrespect for the dead!’ said another.

‘Can you be more respectful??? This just feels incredibly distasteful,” a third wrote.

“Read the damn room,” a fourth commented.

‘Yes… his body is still warm. This is really bad form,” read another.

However, others pointed out that the page was satirical and urged people not to be ‘offended’ by anything they saw online.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Betoota Advocate for comment.

Payne died after falling from the third floor of the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires shortly after 5pm on Wednesday evening local time, after flying out to see former bandmate Niall Horan perform.

Payne (pictured in 2018) died shortly after 5pm local time on Wednesday evening after falling from the third floor of the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires

The singer rose to fame when he formed the boy band One Direction with Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Horan and Harry Styles in 2010, after individually auditioning for The X Factor.

The group reached third place and became a worldwide sensation, with hits such as What Makes You Beautiful and Live While We’re Young.

After becoming one of the biggest pop groups in the world with five albums and four world tours, they went on an indefinite hiatus in 2016.

While in Argentina, Liam was reunited with his former bandmate Horan when he went to see his concert earlier this month.

Payne’s identity was confirmed by emergency services who checked his passport, but police still have no conclusive evidence about the circumstances of his fall.