Just when we thought Miley Cyrus couldn't get any more negative publicity, here we go again!
The controversial singer and former Disney star has been making headlines for months now. First, Cyrus was twerking, sticking out her tongue, prancing around in pleather undies, and grinding up against Robin Thicke at the MTV Video Music Awards. Then she was riding a wrecking ball in the buff in her latest music video.
Now, thanks to some resourceful internet pranksters, Cyrus is the subject of an elaborate hoax that convinced thousands of fans that the star is infected with HIV/AIDS.
So what happened?
On October 2, 2013, legendary internet imageboard site 4chan, a site whose users are notorious for initiating and perpetuating massive pranks on individuals, organizations, and brands, launched a Twitter hashtag called #CureForMiley. To support the hashtag, 4chan users created a very plausible-looking, but very fake, CNN article about how the young celebrity had contracted the HIV/AIDS virus. The faux article alleged that due to Miley's newfound highly-sexualized image and party-going lifestyle, the singer had recently been diagnosed with the deadly virus and was secretly undergoing medical treatment.
4channers then created an accompanying Facebook page, posting photos from gossip blogs which showed Cyrus leaving a medical office and other so-called "evidence" to support the hoax. The Twitter hashtag quickly gained foothold, especially since it came on the heels of an internet rumor that falsely claimed that Miley was pregnant.
With rumors circulating, the e-climate was ripe for an epic prank, which is 4chan's specialty.
What's the deal with 4chan?
4chan users get a big kick out of starting rumors and hashtag campaigns, and since the site is so large and has an audience full of very clever, and often very idle, young minds, these campaigns tend to take off and achieve amazing traction on the web. Some of the site's more successful pranks include "exiling" hip hop superstar Pitbull to Alaska, getting the site's founder named Time Magazine's "Most Influential Person" of 2009, and naming a new Mountain Dew drink "Diabeetus" by usurping the company's PR campaign.
Check out some of the funniest 4chan pranks here!
Most of these pranks are relatively harmless and intended merely to generate amusement among their fellow 4chan fans, and this latest hashtag campaign is no different. Miley's fans quickly rallied for the star, sending countless Tweets and messages of support and love. Taking the prank a step further, an anonymous Twitter user even created a fake account for Miley's former fiance, Liam Hemsworth, which also sent a message of support for the twenty-year old Cyrus. The counterfeit Hemsworth's Tweet said:
"Even though we recently have endured a very public break-up and been through a lot of pain, I'm praying for you Miley. #CureForMiley"
Sweet, huh? Too bad it's totally fake.
What happens next?
Like all good internet pranks, this is sure to blow over and become a part of our collective web humor history. Cyrus herself has yet to respond to the prank. Today, Google Trends reports that the #CureForMiley tag is already waning as more and more media outlets report on the hoax, though like anything else, it might take a while for everyone on the social sites to catch on and realize that they've been had.
The only thing we can be sure of is that we haven't seen the last of these sorts of pranks from the evil geniuses over at 4chan.