Celebs have plenty to say about the novel Coronavirus, but Daniel Radcliffe was just
the victim of a cruel online Coronavirus SCARE!
What’s up?
It’s Emile Ennis Jr. here with Clevver News and with confirmed Coronavirus cases increasing
around the world, it wouldn’t be shocking if a few celebrities came down with the illness.
I mean, we’re all just humans right.
And obviously, the Coronavirus is a sensitive topic right now and we aren’t going to get
into too many details about the illness itself here on Clevver, but please just make sure
you are all washing your hands and taking care of yourselves!
Alright now that that PSA is out of the way…
let’s get to this insane prank that went a little too far...
Anyway, Harry Potter star Daniel Ratcliffe, aka Harry Potter himself, was just the target
of a Coronavirus rumor!
Earlier this week, headlines were buzzing that Daniel had come down with the Coronavirus
thanks to a hoax tweet from a fake BBC News Twitter account @BBCNewsTonight.
But please, do not freak out!
We can confirm that at the moment Daniel Radcliffe is NOT infected!
This fake Twitter account that hijacked the BBC name reported that Daniel was quote “the
first famous person to be publicly confirmed” with the virus!
And although the tweet seemed credible at first glance, if you clicked the profile for
@BBCNewsTonight, it was clearly a fake.
The account had only 125 followers and it has since been suspended, for platform manipulation,
according to a Twitter spokesperson.
But at the time of the tweet, it sent the whole internet into a spiral, especially when
other outlets started to pick up this story.
A New York Times reporter, who re-tweeted the article at the time, felt inclined to
post an apology after taking back retweeted post.
She said quote, “Earlier today, I RTed a fake BBC account and un-RTed when a very helpful
reader flagged it.
My apologies for confusion.”
But she wasn’t the only reporter who was fooled by this fake BBC tweet, a Politico
columnist also issued an apology saying quote, “Apologies, folks - fooled by a fake BBC
account.”
And fans took to Twitter to share their relief after finding out the tweet was fake and let
me just say, the Harry Potter references were on fire.
Let me know if you guys saw this tweet when it came out and feel free to share your thoughts
down in the comment section below to get that conversation started.
But one fan wrote quote, “Remain calm, Harry Potter is fine”
Another wrote quote, “Hermione used the time turner.
Not your fault.”
And another shared this meme that says quote, “Tweetus Deletus”
But even after the fake account was deleted and the journalists un-re-tweeted the hoax
tweet, Daniel’s reps reiterated to the New York Post the claim was quote “not true.”
Sooo why would someone do this?
Well BuzzFeed News actually spoke to the people behind the hoax and they said that quote,
“it was funny, that they were manipulating people’s minds, and that the internet was
lowering people's IQ.”
And when asked why they targeted Daniel specifically, they said quote, “We needed someone who
was famous but not famous enough to be unbelievable.
We found a celebrity that people care about but didn't really have relevant fame.
People love Daniel Radcliffe as a childhood star, but he isn’t popular on social media.”
Ok so not only did these people create a giant internet frenzy during a very scary time in
the world, but now they are insulting Daniel’s level of fame?!
He is and always will be iconic for his role as Harry Potter.
Thank you, next.
Anyway, obviously Daniel isn’t the only celeb who’s been involved in a Coronavirus
related news.
Cardi B has been very vocal about her uneasiness surrounding the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
She’s been taking to social media to get candid about her feelings.
Just yesterday she posted an Instagram video addressing the illness as concerts and events
continue to be cancelled and postponed.
And she went on to explain that she herself is scared hearing all this news.
Cardi also revealed that she’s stocking up on food and panicking, but her fans are
trying to calm her down in the comment section.
Also, these are just fan comments, not actual medical advice, we linked the official CDC’s
website for how to protect yourself from the Coronavirus down in the descriptions in case
you have any questions.
But one fan told Cardi that quote, “Man just wash your hands and bleach everything
down and drink some tea”
Another said quote, “You know this is no worse than the flu that goes round annually
right?
Clearly too many people listening to mainstream media.
They want you to be scared and it’s obviously working.
Don’t panic people.”
And another wrote quote, “Please dont instill fear in people if you have no idea what the
COVID-19 virus is.. you have a large platform.
Be smart.
Do your research...”
But I want to know what you guys think.
Were you shocked when you heard THE Harry Potter was infected with the Coronavirus?!?
Let me know down in the comments below.
And click right over here for another video on celebs and the Coronavirus outbreak.
And as always, make sure you subscribe and hit that bell so you never miss another entertainment
news update.
Thanks so much for watching, I’m Emile Ennis Jr. and I’ll catch you next time.