Rumors About The Death Of President Paul Biya Stirs The Web

Rumors About The Death Of President Paul Biya Stirs The Web

The false news of the death of the Cameroonian president, announced Wednesday afternoon on Twitter caused an unprecedented media spree. Do not panic, at age 84 Paul Biya is still alive and well.

Since Wednesday (11 October), a rumor launched on Twitter, concerning a potential death of Paul Biya, ignites the social network.

Planetary rumor, the Twitter effect

A Foolish Rumor Stirs The Web About The Death Of Paul Biya

The Twitter network carries all kinds of information, the real as the false. The most anodyne as the most terrible. So many personalities have already been the subject of false rumors of death spreading on the Internet as wildfire. Yesterday, it was the turn of Paul Biya, the Cameroonian president, to be buried by a funeral tweet.

Everything started from the message: "Paul Biya has just left us. RIP. ", Published on the microblogging site on Wednesday 11 October around 1:30 pm. The rumor immediately ignites the Web. New tweet an hour later: "Death of Paul Biya, close to the politician confirm".
To amplify the announcement effect, this last tweet is accompanied by a link to the site Necropedia (which specifies nevertheless that Paul Biya is not dead).

According to a poll by the Celebrity Post, a large majority (72%) judged Wednesday night the rumors of the death of Paul Biya very bad taste.

The entourage has "formally denied" the death of the politician

The false information is then taken over by some radio stations and then by media from all over the world. It was not until late on Wednesday that the spokesman for the politician would have split a terse statement that "formally deny the death of Paul Biya."A Foolish Rumor Stirs The Web About The Death Of Paul Biya