Michael Jordan Target of Latest Celebrity Twitter Hoax

We have yet another celebrity whose demise has been greatly exaggerated on Twitter. Today’s victim is Michael Jordan, who was rumored to have a heart attack and is in critical condition. The news was heavily re-tweeted without verification. And it’s a hoax.

Even though the original tweet was days earlier, it only took one signification re-tweet for it to take hold, which it did. Suddenly Twitter was on fire with Michael Jordan prayers and comments, all based on a hoax that few stopped to try to verify. Tweets like this were everywhere:

NBA legend Michael Jordan suffered a Heart Attack at his North Carolina home. He is in critical condition doctors say.

It appears that many people re-tweeted the false story, only to check further and retract it. Michael Jordan’s daughter took to Twitter to personally debunk these rumors. Here are a few of her tweets:

• For those asking if my dads in the hospital answer is NO. he’s actually golfing. I just talked to him loll he says hello. #RumorsVsFacts.
• Glad to know so many people outside of my family care so much for my dads well being but trust me he’s doing just fine:)!
• Loll I’ll say it again for clarification my dad is NOT in the hospital. He’s golfing !

The moral of this story is to think and verify before you spread this kind of news around. Being first to report a story can be cool, but being first to report a false rumor isn’t.

Here are a few other celebrity death hoaxes recently on Twitter:

• Hoax: Is Robin Williams Dead?
• Trending on Twitter: RIP Justin Bieber. NOT True!
• Rumor: Is Mikhail Gorbachev Dead? No!
• Eddie Murphy Did Not Die in a Snowboarding Accident