Twitter is infamous for death rumors to spark. Recently Eddie Murphy died according to Twitter. Thankfully it was a mistake. Well Kim Jong-Un recently suffered a Twitter death. Hit the jump for the full story.
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Rumors of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un’s death took Twitter by storm Friday.
The report, which originated on the Chinese microblogging service Weibo, has not been substantiated by any formal press. But that didn’t stop it from going viral on the Internet. “Kim Jong-Un†is currently trending on Twitter and ranks sixth among Friday’s top 10 Google searches.
The unconfirmed report suggests that Jong-Un, son of the late “Dear Leader†Kim Jong-Il, was assassinated in a military coup while in Beijing, China. News of an “unusually high†number of cars outside North Korea’s embassy in China contributed to the rumor’s staying power.
The rumor really blew up when a fake Twitter account appearing to represent the BBC “confirmed†the news.
The fake BBC tweet was picked up and retweeted by many users, causing more confusion about Jong-un’s status. But a closer look revealed the account’s lack of authenticity, and the warning bells were sounded.
Late Friday afternoon, all of the faux BBC account’s previous tweets were deleted, leaving only an admission that the account was a fake.
According to Matthew Keys, deputy social media editor at Reuters, access to Twitter accounts that are “engaged in non-parody impersonation†can be revoked and given to the brand being impersonated.
Reliable news about North Korea is notoriously difficult to find, as the government is secretive and disallows access to foreign press. However, a senior U.S. official told NBC News Friday that the Jong-un death rumor runs toward “the false end of the spectrum.â€
Mashable cannot confirm the accuracy of the rumors, but this isn’t the first time that Twitter has “killed†someone. Bill Cosby, Eddie Murphy and Fidel Castro are just a few celebrities who have been able to paraphrase Mark Twain and declare that the Twitter-based rumors of their deaths were greatly exaggerated.
