A fake Kim Davis Twitter account with handle @KimDavis917 managed to fool hundreds of users into thinking it was an account representing Kim Davis, including NYT journalists.
If there is one golden rule of journalism, it’s fact checking, especially when it comes to what you see on the World Wide Web.
It’s a rule we’ve reminded people about time and time again in any number of past articles about online nonsense picking up steam because the media elite failed to fact check correctly.
And this is exactly what happened once again after a parody Twitter account posing as now-famous county clerk from Kentucky, Kim Davis (or rather Kim Davis’s husband posting from her account since she’s sitting in a jail cell) quickly picked up followers.
The Twitter account, named KimDavis917, mostly retweeted Tweets of support from those who support Davis, along with a handful of Tweets strewn with spelling errors apparently from her husband comparing Davis with Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks.
Most of the Tweets were exactly what you’d expect to see from a Twitter account representing Kim Davis. A Tweet imploring followers to “stand with Kim”, another Tweet claiming the only supreme court judgement will come from Jesus Christ on Judgement Day, as well an array of retweets from those calling Davis a “Christian hero” and so forth.
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The Twitter account garnered quite a few well known followers, including a New York Times reporter.
Things heated up when the Twitter account posted a handwritten message (below), supposedly written by Davis in jail that boldly claimed that jailed civil right activist Rosa Parks (incorrectly spelt ‘Rose Parks’) “had it easy”, along with a deluge of self-pity and accusations of religious persecution.
The handwritten letter went viral across Twitter, fooling users from both sides of the argument. It was retweeted by NYT journalists and the “smart, fearless journalism” Mother Jones magazine tweeted a third party article about it.
However the letter, and subsequently the entire Twitter account, was revealed to be nothing more than a hoax (outed by user handles @SMLXist and @NobleSasquatch). It had nothing to do with Kim Davis or her husband (later confirmed by them) and highlighted once more how easy it is for hoaxers to fool the Internet, even reporters from mainstream media websites.
Fact checking is, needless to say, vitally important, whether you’re a journalist or otherwise. Hoaxers, scammers, con artists, jokers, trolls or whoever else are always going to try and exploit trending events, but it is up to each individual on the Internet to ensure that they take responsibility to verify information before they choose to share (endorse) it.
In this instance, no camp can hide away from the blame. Both the pro-gay, anti-gay and journalist elite all fell afoul of this carefully orchestrated ruse.
The Stranger scored an interview with the KimDavis917 hoaxer, who remained unknown, on their website which you can read here.
