"Euthanized Jockey" Tale Is Just a Leg-Pull
Description: Fake news / Satire
Circulating since: May 2014
Status: FALSE (see details below)
Example:
Via Empire Sports, May 4, 2014:
Analysis:Actual news sources confirm there was a three-horse collision during the third race of the 2014 Kentucky Derby on May 3, but though two of the jockeys were hurt and taken to a nearby hospital to be examined, the third, James Graham, was uninjured. No humans were euthanized after the incident, accidentally or otherwise.
This false viral report has come to us by way of a familiar source, a website called Empire Sports, which specializes in wacky, satirical "news" coverage of sports figures and has flummoxed the public before with tongue-in-cheek stories such as "Michael Vick Hospitalized in Pit Bull Attack" and "Blake Griffin Smacks Justin Bieber at Hollywood Starbucks."
If you're in any doubt, read the site's disclaimer.
See also:
• Miley Cyrus Kicked Out of Derby Party After Fight With Porn Star Ron Jeremy
Inoculate yourself:
• Don't Be Fooled! A Guide to Fake News Websites
Sources and further reading:
Last updated 05/06/14
Circulating since: May 2014
Status: FALSE (see details below)
Example:
Via Empire Sports, May 4, 2014:
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY— The cheers of fans turned to gasps Saturday afternoon at Churchill downs as an otherwise uneventful race turned tragic after a mid-race collision sent several jockeys flying to the ground and left one jockey dead.
Two jockeys were injured and taken away from Churchill Downs by ambulance after a scary collision during the third race of the Kentucky Derby day slate.
...
A third jockey who was dismounted in the incident, James Graham, broke his leg so severely that trainers were forced to perform emergency medical procedures on location and accidentally injected him with a lethal dose of the drug barbiturates, a drug that is commonly used to euthanize horses.
- Full Text -
Analysis:Actual news sources confirm there was a three-horse collision during the third race of the 2014 Kentucky Derby on May 3, but though two of the jockeys were hurt and taken to a nearby hospital to be examined, the third, James Graham, was uninjured. No humans were euthanized after the incident, accidentally or otherwise.
This false viral report has come to us by way of a familiar source, a website called Empire Sports, which specializes in wacky, satirical "news" coverage of sports figures and has flummoxed the public before with tongue-in-cheek stories such as "Michael Vick Hospitalized in Pit Bull Attack" and "Blake Griffin Smacks Justin Bieber at Hollywood Starbucks."
If you're in any doubt, read the site's disclaimer.
See also:
• Miley Cyrus Kicked Out of Derby Party After Fight With Porn Star Ron Jeremy
Inoculate yourself:
• Don't Be Fooled! A Guide to Fake News Websites
Sources and further reading:
Jockey Accidentally Euthanized After Breaking Leg At Kentucky Derby 140
Empire Sports (satire website), 4 May 2014
Two Jockeys Injured After Kentucky Derby Day Collision
Baltimore Sun, 3 May 2014
California Chrome Pulls Away for Win at Kentucky Derby
Los Angeles Times, 3 May 2014
Last updated 05/06/14
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