1980S STAR VERY MUCH ALIVE, DESPITE HOAX

A number of media organizations were fooled Monday into believing that 1980s star Rick Astley had been found dead at a Berlin Hotel, among other places.

The truth? Astley, who made a brief return to Internet stardom a few years ago when “Rick-Rolling” became an online fad, is very much alive and well.

But the hoax that he had died — perpetuated by last week’s wave of celebrity deaths — caused some media watchdogs to question, “where have the gatekeepers gone?”

The “joke” began on Twitter, and spread like wildfire causing some bloggers to buy into it. From there, the “news” apparently trickled up to reporters — a few of which ran with the story.

But Astley wasn’t alone.

Pop stars Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus, along with actors Harrison Ford and Jeff Goldblum, and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres were all reportedly targets of the faux death hoaxes.

While, thankfully, all of those people are still among the living, it goes without saying that relying on social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook has some serious drawbacks. Especially when reports are published without verification.