Did the New York Jets Sign Colin Kaepernick?

Parody news sometimes looks just like real news.

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Colin Kaepernick
Image via Brook Ward/FLICKR

Claim

The New York Jets have signed quarterback Colin Kaepernick to a one-year, $9 million contract.

Rating

False
False
About this rating

Origin

On April 9, 2020, the website of Cleveland television station WJW (known as FOX8) published an article reporting that the New York Jets football club had agreed to a one-year, $9 million contract with Colin Kaepernick, the controversial NFL quarterback best known for sparking the practice of kneeling during the national anthem to protest racial injustice in the United States:

kaepernick

However, this information was not factual and was sourced from a tweet issued by an account (@SuperToughScene) that parodies the official ESPN SportsCenter Twitter account:

FOX8 quickly published a new article, headlined “Parody ‘SportsCenter’ account falsely tweets Colin Kaepernick signed” and redirected traffic from the original article to the newer one. The later version noted that, “There is no official reporting from the real SportsCenter account or other verified news sources about any team signing the athlete”:

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Sources

Melrose, Justyn.   “Parody ‘SportsCenter’ Account Falsely Tweets Colin Kaepernick Signed.”
    WJW-TV.   9 April 2020.