KUALA LUMPUR, June 2 — It’s OK, Jack Warner. You’re not alone. Many people have been fooled by stories from The Onion.
The former FIFA vice president posted an eight-minute-long video defending himself against corruption charges on Sunday.
Unfortunately, he used a fictional article from the satirical news site to defend himself.
Here are our Top 5 examples of those who fell for The Onion’s spoof news, when they really should have known better:
1. China’s People Daily
In 2012, The Onion named North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un the “sexiest man alive”. China’s The People’s Daily followed up with a glorious 55-page photo gallery on its online site, quoting such satirical gems as: “He has that rare ability to somehow be completely adorable and completely macho at the same time.”
2. Iran FARS news agency
In 2012, The Onion published a story claiming a Gallup poll showed that Americans preferred then Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to US President Barack Obama. Iran’s Fars news agency reprinted the story verbatim, including the line “60 per cent of rural whites said they at least respected that Ahmadinejad doesn’t try to hide the fact that he’s Muslim.”
3. The New York Times
In 2011, an article about the teen fan magazine Tiger Beat reproduced a spoof cover — created by the Onion — featuring President Obama (“Barack: ‘I Sing in The Shower’”).
4. Bangladeshi newspapers
In 2009, two Bangladeshi newspapers were forced to apologise after publishing reports that astronaut Neil Armstrong was convinced his moon landing was faked. Their source? The Onion, of course.
5. Parents
In 2000, The Onion published “Harry Potter books spark rise in Satanism among children”, saying JK Rowling was introducing kids to Satan. It sparked a whole series of chain mails quoting directly from the article, including an interview with “High Priest Egan of the First Church of Satan in Salem, MA”. Some people still insist the article’s claims are true to this day.
