{"id":21608,"date":"2014-07-09T21:01:17","date_gmt":"2014-07-09T13:01:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/?p=21608"},"modified":"2021-07-15T01:05:52","modified_gmt":"2021-07-14T17:05:52","slug":"viral-stories-actually-hoaxes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Viral Stories That Turned Out to Be Hoaxes"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>2013 was deemed as the year of <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/minimize-online-harassment\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Internet hoaxes<\/a> \u2013 in fact, you might have fallen for a few, like the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/edition.cnn.com\/2013\/12\/08\/us\/new-york-gay-waitress-tip\/\">gay waitress<\/a> who <strong>wasn\u2019t tipped because of her lifestyle<\/strong>. American football player Manti Te\u2019o\u2019s dead girlfriend probably made you weep a little until you found out she was imaginary. Speaking of which, bet you thought that the sky was falling when it snowed in Egypt.<\/p>\n<p>One after another, each were proven untrue, which eventually led to <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.buzzfeednews.com\/article\/charliewarzel\/2014-is-the-year-of-the-viral-debunk\">2014 turning into the year of debunking<\/a> hoaxes. In this post, we will be looking at <strong>10 such viral stories that were eventually revealed to be hoaxes<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ref-block ref-block--post\" id=\"ref-post-1\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/science-you-and-social-media\/\" class=\"ref-block__link\" title=\"Read More: 5 Effects Social Networks Have On You\" rel=\"bookmark\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">5 Effects Social Networks Have On You<\/span><\/a>\n<div class=\"ref-block__thumbnail img-thumb img-thumb--jumbo\" data-img='{ \"src\" : \"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/science-you-and-social-media.jpg\" }'>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<noscript>\n<style>.no-js #ref-block-post-17928 .ref-block__thumbnail { background-image: url(\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/thumbs\/250x160\/science-you-and-social-media.jpg\"); }<\/style>\n<\/noscript>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"ref-block__summary\">\n<h4 class=\"ref-title\">5 Effects Social Networks Have On You<\/h4>\n<p class=\"ref-description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tIf you are active on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc, it's probably a way of...\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Read more<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>1. Doncha wish You look Just like Kim<\/h2>\n<p>It is not uncommon for hardcore fans of a a celebrity to try to look like their idol but when it is forced upon and turned into a law, the media sits up and pay attention. In this story, North Korean male students are required by law to <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-26747649\">get the same haircut<\/a> as their <strong>esteemed leader Kim Jong-Un<\/strong> because in order to worship your great leader, you should look <em>exactly<\/em> like him.<\/p>\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/kimhaircut.jpg\" alt=\"kimhaircut\" height=\"558\" width=\"500\"><\/figure>\n<p><small>Image source: <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.huffingtonpost.co.uk\/2014\/04\/15\/north-korean-embassy-haircut_n_5151914.html\">Huffington Post<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n<p>In truth though, while there is a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/newsfeed.time.com\/2013\/02\/25\/these-are-north-koreas-28-state-approved-hairstyles\/\">list<\/a> of <strong>sanctioned haircuts for both men and women<\/strong> in the great country of North Korea, these haircuts are not <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/2014\/03\/why-kim-jong-un-hairstyle-order-is-unlikely-true\/\">heavily enforced<\/a>. And no, \u2018The Kim\u2019 cut isn\u2019t included in the list of haircuts you are allowed to have there. Tourists who have returned from North Korea also did not find other Kim Jong-Uns running around. But even if they did, <strong>it is probably a non-enforced passing trend<\/strong> or a display of loyalty by hardcore fans, which we know he has a lot of.<\/p>\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/kimjongun.jpg\" alt=\"kimjongun\" height=\"594\" width=\"500\"><\/figure>\n<h2>2. You can\u2019t sit in KFC with us<\/h2>\n<p>By now, you should have seen or heard about Victoria Wilcher. Here\u2019s what she looks like, if you haven\u2019t:<\/p>\n<figure> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/victoriafb.jpg\" alt=\"victoriafb\" height=\"450\" width=\"500\"><\/figure>\n<p><small>Image source: <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-2666653\/Hoax-Story-3-year-old-victim-pit-bull-attack-kicked-KFC-restaurant-facial-injuries-scared-diners-untrue-claims-party-investigation.html\">Daily Mail<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n<p>The scars you see on her face were results from an attack by the three-year-old\u2019s grandfather\u2019s pitbulls. It left her with complications such as paralysis on the right side of the face, and having to depend on a feeding tube to eat. One day, her grandma entered a KFC outlet to get mash potatoes only to be <strong>turned out of the place by management because Victoria\u2019s injuries were making the other customers uneasy<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>This understandably caused an uproar which prompted KFC to launch an investigation into the incident \u2013 and what they found was that <strong>the incident never happened<\/strong>. The scene of the crime <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.leader-call.com\/news\/local\/update-kentucky-fried-hoax\/article_16c206bd-79dc-5c2a-b202-27adc279e23d.html\">wasn\u2019t operational yet<\/a>, and the Wilchers were not found on any of the CCTV footage; their order of sweet tea and mashed potatoes did not turn up on any of the orders and they found that the place is actually near a hospital where patients of injuries would be a normal sight, than not.<\/p>\n<p>Despite all this, the Wilchers are standing by their story but took the Facebook support page for Victoria down. Perhaps as a sign of good will, KFC announced that they are honoring their $30,000 pledge to Victoria\u2019s fund to aid in her recovery.<\/p>\n<h2>3. No alcohol for you till you\u2019re 25<\/h2>\n<p>If you are worrying that you need to wait longer than 21 to get your taste of booze, legally in the US, because someone reported that this is happening starting August 2014, here\u2019s some good news you can toast to. In news \u2018reports\u2019 like this, <em><strong>where<\/strong><\/em><strong> you got the report from is very important<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>As in this case, the new 25-year old limit was reported from <strong>Sunday Times Daily<\/strong>, which only exists for the sad, sole purpose of generating fake \"news\". When you view a piece of \u201cnews\u201d on the site, it\u2019ll display a \u201cYou\u2019ve been fooled!\u201d message after you\u2019re done reading. Unless of course, you just read someone\u2019s rant on Twitter on how they can\u2019t legally drink when they turn 21 this weekend.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Always check your sources, kid!<\/strong><\/p>\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/drinking25.jpg\" alt=\"drinking25\" height=\"432\" width=\"500\"><\/figure>\n<h2>4. And yet another celebrity dies<\/h2>\n<p>I am half convinced that celebrities have nine lives or have discovered the elixir to eternal life. If not, how does that explain why one fine day they reportedly <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/List_of_premature_obituaries\">drop dead<\/a> but are snapped shopping the following day, very much alive? Celebrities have to <strong>take to Twitter or other channels to declare<\/strong>, \"Nope, still here.\"<\/p>\n<p>While some cases are apparent hoaxes, at other times, Twitter is overly fond of burying celebrities 6 feet under well before their time, as in the case of the mistaken death of Cher, because of a hashtag known as #NowThatchersDead. This is a case when it is <strong>important to be sensitive to lower and upper cases<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Aside from reading hashtags (carefully!), it is important to scrutinize any trending news of a dead celebrity on Twitter. When in doubt, <strong>go to the celeb\u2019s official social media account<\/strong> (no, Morgan Freeman\u2019s Facebook memorial page does not count) or consider more traditional means of confirmation: actual news sites. We don\u2019t want another mistaken death in our hands or even discounting a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/guardianlv.com\/2013\/11\/paul-walker-day-after-death-hoax-he-dies-in-fiery-car-crash\/\">real celebrity death<\/a> like Fast and Furious star, Paul Walker\u2019s.<\/p>\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/ripmorganfreeman.jpg\" alt=\"ripmorganfreeman\" height=\"317\" width=\"500\"><\/figure>\n<h2>5. Off to the dogs!<\/h2>\n<p>In another installment of weird news from North Korea, Kim Jong-Un was reported to have sentenced his second-in-command (and uncle) to death; death by dogs, to be precise. Jang Song-Thaek was reportedly torn apart by a pack of ravenous dogs in one of the world\u2019s most horrific execution style of this modern world. <strong>Only, it didnt happen.<\/strong><\/p>\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/uncleexecution.jpg\" alt=\"uncleexecution\" width=\"500\" height=\"300\"><\/figure>\n<p><small>Image source: <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2013\/dec\/13\/north-korea-executes-kim-jong-un-uncle-jang-song-thaek\">The Guardian<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n<p>Turns out the news was a direct translation, <strong>word-for-word from a Chinese satirical account<\/strong>, courtesy of <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/worldviews\/wp\/2014\/01\/03\/no-kim-jong-un-probably-didnt-feed-his-uncle-to-120-hungry-dogs\/\">Chinese tabloid<\/a> Wen Wei Po, before it was picked up by Singapore media and spread to Western media. Language barriers are tricky but we can all agree that it is safe to <strong>discount news from trashy tabloids<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Granted that confirming news from North Korea is difficult but if South Korea, who is usually privy to its neighbour\u2019s ongoings, didn\u2019t report on this, all the <strong>other journalists should probably double check their sources<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>6. The athlete who cried wolf<\/h2>\n<p>Sochi Winter Olympics was <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/bleacherreport.com\/articles\/1952496-the-20-biggest-sochiproblems\">beset with problems<\/a> like incomplete construction, not-yet-fully-functioning facilities, and a stray dog problem. US luger Kate Hansen topped all that when she <strong>tweeted about a wolf prowling outside her hotel corridor<\/strong>. Twitter and the rest of US media understandably freaked out.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" lang=\"en\">\n<p>Wolf in my hall?!? <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SochiProblems?src=hash\">#SochiProblems<\/a> <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SochiFail?src=hash\">#SochiFail<\/a> <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ZMqZFC40jp\">https:\/\/t.co\/ZMqZFC40jp<\/a><\/p>\n<p>  \u2014 Kate Hansen (@k8ertotz) <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/k8ertotz\/statuses\/436375062229180416\">February 20, 2014<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>By now, you should know that this is definitely a hoax, and you\u2019d be right, especially if you think that this is a a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=hze_6-f5KNA\">hoax conjured<\/a> up by TV host Jimmy Kimmel, notorious for a wide variety of pranks such as the <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=HSJMoH7tnvw\">twerking woman<\/a> who caught fire.<\/p>\n<h2>7. China is deprived of sunrises<\/h2>\n<p>Beijing\u2019s pollution is a reputation that the great city finds hard to shake off, so when the news story about <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-2540955\/Beijing-clouded-smog-way-sunrise-watch-giant-commercial-screens-Tiananmen-Square.html\">televised sunrises on gigantic screens<\/a> around the city, as a reprieve for those who miss the Sun came about, we share a collected \"oh, you poor things\" reaction, because we are suckers.<\/p>\n<figure> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/chinasunrise.jpg\" alt=\"chinasunrise\" height=\"324\" width=\"500\"><\/figure>\n<p><small>Image source: <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.techinasia.com\/beijing-residents-watching-fake-sunrises-giant-tvs-pollution\">Tech In Asia<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n<p>While there\u2019s no denying that Beijing\u2019s air is widely considered a health hazard, the virtual sunrises are just\u2026 pictures. The <strong>photos you see circulating around the Internet were taken at a very specific moment<\/strong>, right when the screens pan over the sunrise clip in an advert. Yes, despite the photographic evidence, what you see there is an advert (there is even a logo of the advert if you look close enough). <strong>Don\u2019t be so quick to judge China just because it\u2019s China<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>8. Passport picasso art<\/h2>\n<p>A Chinese man was <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2014\/05\/30\/chinese-kid-draws-all-over-dads-passport-dad-gets-stuck-in-south-korea-4745289\/\">reportedly trapped<\/a> in immigration nightmare, in South Korea because his 4-year-old son doodled on his passport, rendering it useless, and the poor man passport-less.<\/p>\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/passportdoodle.jpg\" alt=\"passportdoodle\" height=\"664\" width=\"500\"><\/figure>\n<p>Now, this one is actually easy to debunk. One, normally with identification documents, details are blurred out, while in this particular masterpiece, <strong>everything is out in the open, just conveniently scribbled over by a very discerning artist<\/strong> (despite his age). A writer from <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/kotaku.com\/that-chinese-passport-story-sure-looks-like-a-hoax-1584676937\">Kotaku.com<\/a> also noted that kids that age do not display the artistic dexterity depicted by the doodles here. There are also no smudging, and the lines are too uniformed, not to mention the doodles in the far right are actually floating off the passport.<\/p>\n<h2>9. Japan riding the Pokemon plane<\/h2>\n<p>Previously we wrote about how the Japanese football team <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/world-cup-2014-facts\/\" rel=\"noopener\">adopted Pikachu<\/a> as their mascot for the World Cup. So what could be more perfect (and cute) if the national team were to show up in Brazil on a Pokemon plane?<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" lang=\"en\">\n<p>Japan's plane for the World Cup. How awesome is that? <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/5wNKd7Le5z\">pic.twitter.com\/5wNKd7Le5z<\/a><\/p>\n<p>  \u2014 World Cup 2014 (@FIFAWorldCupTM) <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/FIFAWorldCupTM\/statuses\/476739450450366464\">June 11, 2014<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Sadly though, in reality, the Pokemon planes may have existed but had been retired on September 2013. This newsbit is <strong>spread all over Twitter by an unofficial FIFA World Cup Twitter account<\/strong> and eventually our good friends at <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/kotaku.com\/dont-fall-for-this-pokemon-world-cup-hoax-1589800201\">Kotaku<\/a> did a quick Internet search and found that Japan flew on a sadly non-Pokemon emblazoned plane.<\/p>\n<h2>10. Diane, you rude<\/h2>\n<p>This is too epic to not include here although it was last year\u2019s story. During Thanksgiving season, reality TV producer Elan Gale<strong> tweeted about an exchange with a very rude airplane passenger<\/strong>. The lady passenger was apparently upset with the flight attendants because of her delayed flight. Gale decided to engage in a war with the woman, Diane, mid-flight, and offered a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.buzzfeednews.com\/article\/rachelzarrell\/this-epic-note-passing-war-on-a-delayed-flight-wins-thanksgi\">play-by-play<\/a> of the incident, all on Twitter.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" lang=\"en\">\n<p>I sent the lady a glass of wine and a note <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/GttnmQI25P\">pic.twitter.com\/GttnmQI25P<\/a><\/p>\n<p>  \u2014 elan gale (@theyearofelan) <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/theyearofelan\/statuses\/406112619506851840\">November 28, 2013<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The whole thing escalated and ended with the woman being arrested by airport security after having slapped Gale \u2013 <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-2515361\/Elan-Gale-Thanksgiving-note-battle-played-Twitter-ended-slap.html\">news sites<\/a> were quick to report the whole thing as it happened. And Gale finally announces that Diane\u2026 was made up and<strong> the whole thing was conjured up for everyone\u2019s entertainment for Thanksgiving<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>In his defence, Gale has been known to tweet jokes and fake live tweets before, and he was right when he said <strong>nobody bothered to to ask for clarification from him before running the story<\/strong> of the epic fight. That will teach you to trust a TV show producer.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>2013 was deemed as the year of Internet hoaxes \u2013 in fact, you might have fallen for a few, like the gay waitress who wasn\u2019t tipped because of her lifestyle. American football player Manti Te\u2019o\u2019s dead girlfriend probably made you weep a little until you found out she was imaginary. Speaking of which, bet you&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":133,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3398,3409],"tags":[1962],"topic":[4523,4521],"class_list":["entry-content","is-maxi"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.8 (Yoast SEO v27.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>10 Viral Stories That Turned Out to Be Hoaxes - Hongkiat<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"2013 was deemed as the year of Internet hoaxes &ndash; in fact, you might have fallen for a few, like the gay waitress who wasn&#039;t tipped because of her\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"10 Viral Stories That Turned Out to Be Hoaxes\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"2013 was deemed as the year of Internet hoaxes &ndash; in fact, you might have fallen for a few, like the gay waitress who wasn&#039;t tipped because of her\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hongkiat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hongkiatcom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-07-09T13:01:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-07-14T17:05:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/assets.hongkiat.com\/uploads\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\/kimhaircut.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Leanne Tan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@hongkiat\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@hongkiat\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Leanne Tan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Leanne Tan\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6ad80e3854b7d72f9f0193be09fd553d\"},\"headline\":\"10 Viral Stories That Turned Out to Be Hoaxes\",\"datePublished\":\"2014-07-09T13:01:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-07-14T17:05:52+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1722,\"commentCount\":7,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/assets.hongkiat.com\\\/uploads\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/kimhaircut.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"rr\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Internet\",\"Social Media\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/\",\"name\":\"10 Viral Stories That Turned Out to Be Hoaxes - Hongkiat\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.hongkiat.com\\\/blog\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/assets.hongkiat.com\\\/uploads\\\/viral-stories-actually-hoaxes\\\/kimhaircut.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2014-07-09T13:01:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-07-14T17:05:52+00:00\",\"description\":\"2013 was deemed as the year of Internet hoaxes &ndash; 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