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Internet pranks: some unintentional, others out to dupe public By Michael C. Guilmette Jr. Originally published on April 22, 2004, in the Bay Mills News.
Abrams most likely was not trying to deceive anyone with his opener, but it is clear to see how someone might draw that conclusion. The Internet is ripe with such potentially misleading postings, articles and advertisements — many are unintentional, but just as many are out there to dupe the general public. As with many issues surrounding Internet proliferation, this is nothing new — just an old idea transferred to a new medium. For example, a car dealership once ran a print advertisement promoting a “Half Price” sale — one which the prices listed were half the actual price. Most people are also aware of the supermarket tabloids and dubious claims found within the yellow-tinged pages. Because of that, most readers can put the sensational items into the proper context. However, since the Internet is relatively new, these same reasonable people do not yet have the same frame of reference to apply to the Internet. Take, for instance, The Onion, a satirical print and online newspaper that publishes obviously bogus articles but uses proper journalistic styles. Because of this, articles printed in The Onion will occasionally be cited to back up some fantastic claims. In June 2000, The Onion released a piece entitled “Harry Potter Books Spark Rise in Satanism Among Children” which lampooned the wildly popular book series and the author, J.K. Rowling. However, some fundamentalists who feel that the Potter series is a negative influence on young readers quickly pointed to the article as proof of the true ulterior motive behind the books, calling them an “encyclopedia of Satanism.” The Onion has pulled the proverbial wool over the eyes of readers with other fictitious accounts as well, from the Coldwater, Mich., Branch County sheriff’s department to the Beijing Evening News in China, with stories about how al-Qaida is raising money through telemarketing scams or how congressional members were threatening to leave Washington, D.C. unless a new Capitol building was constructed. In print, The Onion is featured beside such illustrious publications as The Weekly World News or The National Enquirer, but online it stands alone. Without a direct source of comparison, The Onion could be confused with the real thing. Another website, ThinkGeek.com, advertises novelty items for programmers, engineers or anyone passionate about technology. Along with the t-shirts, hats and James Bond 007-style pocket cameras, ThinkGeek posts clearly-stated prank advertisements for phony products — products that duped would-be customers will still try to buy. Wired.com reported in March that ThinkGeek’s ad for a Desktop Zero-Point Infinite Power Generator — a device that theoretically would generate power from quantum fluctuations of subatomic particles — draws orders from all over the world. Like urban legends, prank articles and ads predate the Internet. But, with the simply overwhelming amount of information that is merely keystrokes away, it can be difficult to distinguish the real from the absurd. Also, interest in more current and pressing world events such as coverage of the 9/11 Hindsight Commission hearings or Janet Jackson’s exhibitionary “wardrobe malfunction” at Superbowl 2004 can easily take up Internet surfing time, leaving little time or interest in vetting out a prank. Should pranks be banned and the pranksters be punished? Such actions would be excessive and could well violate free speech laws. But, at the same time, pranksters need to be conscious of the effects that their jokes may have. More importantly, the public — all of us — need to be more aware of the fallacies that abound online. Usually, a story that sounds too good to be true can be easily corroborated or debunked by 30 seconds of research on an Internet search site. Pranks may never end, but a healthy dose of skepticism and common sense will keep them from being anything more than jokes. Related sites: www.sluggy.com, www.theonion.com, www.thinkgeek.com • Mike Guilmette is a staff reporter/columnist with the Bay Mills News. His website can be seen at http://www.sigperl.com/. |
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Copyright © 2004, Michael C. Guilmette Jr. |
The Internet. More than just fun and games. It has become the global source of practical uses — so says Peter Abrams in the inaugural strip of his daily web comic, Sluggy Freelance. One might expect with a line like that, Abrams’ comic is modestly Internet-related. However, anyone familiar with the hilarious antics of Torg, Riff, Zoë, Gwynn, Bun-Bun, Aylee and Kiki would know that this is not the case.
