Social media rumours and a Twitter hashtag claim that popular TV host Ellen has passed away.
Users would most likely have come into contact with this hoax after noticing RIPEllen trending in the United States on Twitter.
However, despite the hashtag, the TV host Ellen DeGeneres is still alive.
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How rumours start on viral social media platforms such as Twitter is often unclear. Many claim the hashtag was started after unconfirmed rumours circulated claiming The Ellen DeGeneres Show was being cancelled which was subsequently misconstrued into a claim that the host herself had died, while others attribute it to jokes about Ellen falling from a roof.
The hashtag RIPEllen is currently being fuelled by people jokingly posting fake condolences messages using the photos of celebrities that vaguely look like Ellen, in what has morphed into another strange Internet meme.
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