Is it death? Or is it the lie?
On the internet, someone can die multiple times.
I’m not talking about figurative death that has become the social media’s vernacular language for millennials and Gen Z. Once in a while, you might come across posts announcing someone’s — usually a public figure –death. In most cases, the post became viral enough that the person had to release a public statement refuting their “death”.
Many celebrities have fallen victim to these unfounded rumours, including Jackie Chan, Macaulay Culkin, Betty White, Morgan Freeman, even Apple co-founder Steve Job (who passed away in 2011). It could also target non-human internet-famous figures, such as Boo the Dog, who was reported died in his sleep back in 2012. The dog’s owner had to post a statement on Boo’s official Facebook page, stating that he was “alive and kickin’.” To make the rumours believable, the spreader would often embed links to fake articles “reporting” the person’s death.
Former Indonesian president Megawati Soekarnoputri was the latest target of a fake death rumour. It’s unclear how the rumour started in the first place, but a member of Soekarnoputri’s Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) cited a YouTube channel and a TikTok account as the sources. The member reported said accounts to the police for spreading hoaxes, which under Indonesia’s draconian Electronic Information and Transaction Law, could result in a maximum of six years jail time and IDR 1 billion (USD 70,000) fine.
Until now, the main objective of spreading hoaxes about Soekarnoputri’s death is still unknown. Admittedly, she is not the most beloved political figure in Indonesia, but risking jail time out of hatred just isn’t wise. But in general, why would you create hoaxes about someone’s death in the first place?
Mark Bell, an adjunct professor at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis who studies deception in digital media, told New York Times that fake death rumour is like childhood pranks. The spreaders get a thrill from telling lies, especially one that is believed by other people, he said. So in short: it’s all for fun.
But that’s not the case for the victims. The rumour of Celine Dion taking her own life back in 2013 became viral right when she was celebrating her twins birthday. Instead of celebrating the day with her loved ones, she had to answer calls from concerned family and friends, reassuring them that she was alive and well. She told Digital Spy that the hoax made her a little mad due to its impact on her close ones.
In the era where social media is deeply entrenched in people’s life and bogus rumours are ready to take off any time soon. People will do anything for their 15 minutes of fame, disregarding that their targets are humans with people who love them.
On the internet, someone can die multiple times.
I’m not talking about figurative death that has become the social media’s vernacular language for millennials and Gen Z. Once in a while, you might come across posts announcing someone’s — usually a public figure –death. In most cases, the post became viral enough that the person had to release a public statement refuting their “death”.
Many celebrities have fallen victim to these unfounded rumours, including Jackie Chan, Macaulay Culkin, Betty White, Morgan Freeman, even Apple co-founder Steve Job (who passed away in 2011). It could also target non-human internet-famous figures, such as Boo the Dog, who was reported died in his sleep back in 2012. The dog’s owner had to post a statement on Boo’s official Facebook page, stating that he was “alive and kickin’.” To make the rumours believable, the spreader would often embed links to fake articles “reporting” the person’s death.
Former Indonesian president Megawati Soekarnoputri was the latest target of a fake death rumour. It’s unclear how the rumour started in the first place, but a member of Soekarnoputri’s Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) cited a YouTube channel and a TikTok account as the sources. The member reported said accounts to the police for spreading hoaxes, which under Indonesia’s draconian Electronic Information and Transaction Law, could result in a maximum of six years jail time and IDR 1 billion (USD 70,000) fine.
Until now, the main objective of spreading hoaxes about Soekarnoputri’s death is still unknown. Admittedly, she is not the most beloved political figure in Indonesia, but risking jail time out of hatred just isn’t wise. But in general, why would you create hoaxes about someone’s death in the first place?
Mark Bell, an adjunct professor at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis who studies deception in digital media, told New York Times that fake death rumour is like childhood pranks. The spreaders get a thrill from telling lies, especially one that is believed by other people, he said. So in short: it’s all for fun.
But that’s not the case for the victims. The rumour of Celine Dion taking her own life back in 2013 became viral right when she was celebrating her twins birthday. Instead of celebrating the day with her loved ones, she had to answer calls from concerned family and friends, reassuring them that she was alive and well. She told Digital Spy that the hoax made her a little mad due to its impact on her close ones.
In the era where social media is deeply entrenched in people’s life and bogus rumours are ready to take off any time soon. People will do anything for their 15 minutes of fame, disregarding that their targets are humans with people who love them.
