Fact Check

Kid Rock Death Hoax

A Facebook "prank" claimed that musician Kid Rock had passed away in July 2017.

Published July 4, 2017

 (Wikipedia)
Image Via Wikipedia
Claim:
Musician Kid Rock died in July 2017.

A Facebook post resembling a genuine news item reporting that musician Kid Rock had been found dead at his home was circulated over 4th of July weekend in 2017:

Although this post resembled a genuine news item, it was actually a product of the "prank" web site Channel23News.com.

Channel23News.com enables users to "prank" their friends by creating and sharing fake news stories. The user provides the headline, a brief text about the fake news item, and an image, and the web site formats this content to resemble a genuine news bulletin posted via social media:

Create A Prank And Trick All Your Friends!

Simply Create Your Own Prank And Then Share It On Your Social Network Pages!

Tips: You must be creative but keep in mind to make it fun.
Fake Title: Choose a catchy title for your joke. Make your friends curious.
Description: Be creative and make your friends curious.
Image: Upload one or search one via google images

Although these items resemble real news items when they are shared on social media, readers who click through to visit the underlying article and web site are greeted with a "You Got Owned" meme and the following disclaimer:

We do NOT support FAKE NEWS!!! This is a Prank website that is intended for Fun. Bullying, Violent Threats or posts that Violate Public Order are NOT permitted on this Website.

Dan Evon is a former writer for Snopes.