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Journalism Conspiracies

Examining Legends, Hoaxes and Frauds

Popular Press

• "When journalists create a hoax, no matter how preposterous, some readers will believe it. Moreover, other journalists will notice and reprint the story, not knowing (or perhaps caring) that the details are fictitious." A Journalists' Favorite Hoax: Petrifications, by Fred Fedle.
  
• Esquire's sexy starlet is the hoax with the most
  By David Futrelle

• Grunge Lexicon Hoax
  The New York Times printed this phony guide to grunge slang.

• I was a media dupe
  "Even the most wary, seasoned reporter -- like, say,
  me -- can fall for a hoax," James Marcus.

Academic Publications

• Warning: Beware of VIDEA!
  A vanity press for the academic set that was sent absurd abstracts which it approved for publication.

Educators Class Experiment

• Journalism class experiment aims to teach a lesson
  by Ellen Kimbro, Daily Beacon, April 18, 1995

• Don't Believe Everything You Read
  By Joel Achenbach, Washington Post, December 4, 1996

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