An article saying a mother named Mary Robbins stabbed and killed three people at a Wal-Mart for an Xbox One during Black Friday has gone viral, but it was published on the satirical Daily Currant site and is a fake.
“A woman was arrested today for stabbing to death three shoppers at a Chicago-area Wal-Mart in order to secure the store’s last X-Box One,” the Daily Currant story reads, adding that the woman used a screwdriver. “The victim’s names have not yet been released, but are said to include a sociology student at Northwestern University, a chemistry teacher at at local high school and a young pregnant woman buying a system for her brother,” it continues.
However, the Daily Currant--like The Onion or the National Report--is a satire news site.
“The Daily Currant is an English language online satirical newspaper that covers global politics, business, technology, entertainment, science, health and media. It is accessible from over 190 countries worldwide - now including South Sudan,” reads a disclaimer on the site.
It includes a FAQ section, which has the question: “Are your news stories real?” The response reads: “No. Our stories are purely fictional. However they are meant to address real-world issues through satire and often refer and link to real events happening in the world.”
But that didn’t stop more than 600,000 people from “liking” it on Facebook over the past several days.
The Wal-Mart stabbing article appears to make fun of the violence that sometimes erupts during Black Friday shopping. The Onion recently published its own satire, titled “42 Million Dead in Bloodiest Black Friday Weekend on Record.”
In the comments section, a number of people appeared to be fooled by it.
“To all who are shocked that people would actually believe this article was true, the reason is simple - people really ARE that depraved. Our culture really has become THAT awful. Horrible enough to make something like this believable. Reading this article, it sounded plenty believable... until the section about Walmart, 5000,” reads one.
Other satire stories on the website include “Government Plans $2 Billion Bailout of Blockbuster” and “Lindsey Graham Gets Benghazi Tattoo on Veterans Day.”
But unlike The Onion, some of the satire stories have borderline-realistic premises, including “CBS: Obama Ordered Benghazi Cover-Up” and “PS4 Delayed Until 2014 Says Sony CEO.”
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