Stevie Wonder Death Hoax Gets 50,000 Views — But Stevie’s Not Dead At 66 From Car Accident [Debunked]


Stevie Wonder isn’t dead, but a fake news site pretending to be NBC News claims that he died at the age of 66. On Thursday, December 29, claims that John Amos had died were also debunked, as reported by the Inquisitr. That article about John’s fake death had gained more than 100,000 views and Facebook shares as it got debunked. Now a headline screaming that “Stevie Wonder, Dead At 66” is being passed around Facebook, along with some people sending RIP wishes to the iconic singer. Others are “wondering” if the article about Stevie is true or not. Yet others are admonishing their Facebook followers to check Google first before sharing articles that claim some celebrity has died.

The article that claimed Stevie died in a car accident is a perfect example. That’s because the piece contains some pretty glaring errors that has people confused. It claimed that Stevie died in a car accident — with the hoax stating that has was both in Los Angeles and in Detroit at the time of the accident, an impossible feat, unless he somehow time-traveled to both cities within a short span of time to die in both accidents. The error makes this death hoax pretty obvious. As reported by Snopes, the death hoax was created by NBC-News.net — a website that calls itself satirical in its disclaimer.

“Stevie Wonder has passed away this early this morning, on December 29th. Wonder was 66. According to close sources to the artist, Wonder was involved in a deadly car crash in Detroit, MI after the vehicle he was a passenger in was in a head-on collision in Los Angeles, California. He was pronounced dead on the scene. The driver and other passengers are in [sic] currently in critical condition. Stevie Wonder was known for his Grammy award winning hits such as, ‘Living For The City,’ ‘Superstition’ and ‘I Wish’ plus many more. Born, Steveland Hardaway Morris (née Judkins), came to fame as a child prodigy. Known for playing the piano and other instruments while being visually impaired, Stevie Wonder came to fame after signing with Motown records at the age of 11. Wonder has had over 30 US top ten hits and has won 25 Grammys and an Academy Award plus many more accolades. Stevie Wonder leaves behind nine children and a host of family and friends.”

What isn’t known is how such websites get such a large amount of views for their fake stories — whether they publish certain stories and hope they’ll catch fire, or whether they run ads to gain attention. One article from the website — titled “Hillary Clinton: ‘My First Executive Order Will Be To Remove The Desk From The Oval Office, Where My Husband Had Sexual Relations'” — didn’t catch fire as much as the Stevie death hoax article. The one about Hillary only received about 900 views, according to their own view count. Then there was one titled “Confirmed: Sheriff David Clarke Hit In Head With Brick After Milwaukee Riots” that received slightly more than 2,000 views.

The “Florida Teen Accused of Posing as FBI Agent to Prostitutes for Free Services” article seems to be a hit, garnering more than 330,000 views. According to Facebook, some people are believing that hoax — because the fake news website used a photo of a man who has been in trouble previously posing as a doctor. A search for “Collinsville High School,” a school named in the fake article, turns up lots of results on Facebook about the fake article.

Meanwhile, with the Stevie Wonder death hoax still making the rounds, the singer’s fans can’t help but wonder if other celebrities are curious if they are famous enough to turn up in the next death hoax — and if so, how their fans will react in response to their internet-created deaths. On Facebook, some are expressing shock over Stevie Wonder’s fake death.

[Featured Image by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP Images]

Share this article: Stevie Wonder Death Hoax Gets 50,000 Views — But Stevie’s Not Dead At 66 From Car Accident [Debunked]
More from Inquisitr