Topic: Hoaxes

Rep. Steve Cohen: Culture Jammer

cohen.house.gov

Cohen explained to multiple outlets that calling the singer-activist Cyndi Lauper "hot" on Twitter and then deleting the tweet, was part of an elaborate ploy to prank the political media, thereby drawing attention to their taste for scandal.

By J.K. Trotter

Apr 9, 2013

The Time an Entire Campus Dumped Its Booze Because of Snapchat

This is not how you'd expect Snapchat, the self-destructing image-sharing app, to get college kids into trouble: many underage students at the University of Virginia dumped their beer and spirits because of a social media hoax on Monday afternoon.

Comments | 5,136 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Mar 14, 2013

How to Make a Fake North Korean Propaganda Movie

Yes, Kim Jong-un's state news agencies have been even more absurd than usual lately. But, no, North Korea did not film, produce, and distribute a four-and-a-half-minute propaganda film depicting the harrowing lives of Americans forced to eat snow and live in tents as the country around them collapses.

Comments | 22,777 Views

By Connor Simpson

Feb 27, 2013

MIT Says Its Gunman Hoax Claimed to Be Retaliating for Aaron Swartz's Suicide

The story about the gunman-on-MIT campus hoax called in to Cambridge police Saturday morning  took a strange turn Wednesday afternoon. According to a school official, the hoax centered around someone seeking revenge for deceased hacker and Reddit co-founder Aaron Swartz. 

Comments | 1,034 Views

By Connor Simpson

Feb 23, 2013

The MIT Gunman Threat Was a Hoax

Twitter exploded Saturday morning after a gunman wearing body armor was reportedly spotted on the MIT campus, which is terrifying. Except after the smoke cleared and no gunman was found, it appears the whole thing was a hoax.

Comments | 11,308 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jan 24, 2013

Spanish Paper Duped by Fake Hugo Chavez Hospital Photo

The world and Venezuela are anxiously awaiting for Hugo Chavez's first public appearance since fleeing to Cuba for cancer treatment last year. That's why the Spanish paper El Pais decided to run a picture of what they thought was an intubated Chavez.

Comments | 2,017 Views

By Rebecca Greenfield

Nov 26, 2012

Four Signs the Google-IOCA 'Press Release' Wasn't Real

Let's take a look at some of the tell-tale signs we should have seen from the press release that might have indicated its fakery — and fended off an unfair stock-market bump.

Comments | 893 Views

By Hannah Miet

Jun 11, 2012

'Blind Date' Yacht Explosion Likely a Lame Hoax

The initial report came in around 4 p.m. on Monday. An explosion on a yacht named Blind Date sent 21 passengers adrift off the coast of New Jersey, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

Comments | 3,640 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

May 9, 2012

Sorry, No Dentist Pulled Out All of Her Ex-Boyfriend's Teeth

Remember that delicious "hell hath no fury" story about an angry dentist in Poland who pulled out all of her ex-boyfriend's teeth? You may be shocked to learn that it didn't really happen.

Comments | 1,897 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

May 8, 2012

Sorry, Abraham Lincoln Didn't Invent Facebook

Forgive us for being jerks and ruining your feel-good meme of the day, but that story about our beloved Abraham Lincoln inventing his own version of Facebook in the 1800s is a hoax.  

Comments | 6,714 Views

By Adam Clark Estes

Mar 22, 2012

That Amazing Human Bird Video Is Fake

We're heartbroken to report that the viral video of a Dutch inventor flying through the sky on a pair of handmade wings is a complete fake.

Comments | 2,785 Views

By Rebecca Greenfield

Sep 24, 2011

Mark Davidson's Twitter Hijacking by Ghostwriters Was a Hoax

He tells The Atlantic Wire that he wanted to make his Jewish mother proud

Comments | 7,028 Views

By Ray Gustini

May 31, 2011

The 'Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' Trailer Mystery

All you need to do is follow the money. We think

Comments | 1,552 Views

By Alex Eichler

Apr 13, 2011

The Associated Press Falls for Hoax on GE's Taxes

GE's not giving $3.2 billion to the government after all

Comments | 2,194 Views

By Ray Gustini

Mar 31, 2011

'The Governator' Has to Be an April Fool's Joke, Right?

A new Entertainment Weekly--on sale April 1--talks of a new comic

Comments | 1,525 Views

By Ray Gustini

Mar 28, 2011

Through the 'Hipster Runoff' Looking-Glass

Why serious debate about a hipster humor site tends to look silly

Comments | 1,812 Views

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