Invented Story About NY Mayor Suckers Drudge Report

Image: theatlanticwire.com

Earlier this week, a story made the Web rounds, in which New York mayor Mike Bloomberg was allegedly denied a second slice of pizza at a Brooklyn establishment. The idea that Hizzoner would cross the Manhattan-Brooklyn moat for a slice should have immediately aroused skepticism. Ah, but those wild and crazy folks at the Drudge Report accepted the story at face value. According to The Atlantic Wire, the story was posted at the Drudge website as "news," although it was removed later in the day.

Hoaxes such as the Bloomberg pizza story happen to just about any media outlet. Those sites with perceived ideological perspectives are notably vulnerable to acts of folly. The easy solution to this dilemma is to check the facts. Drudge didn't do so in this case, but it's far from the only popular website for whom fact is not as important as speed.