This week in fake news
A roundup of some of the most popular but completely untrue headlines of the week. None of these stories is legit, even though they were shared widely on social media. The Associated Press checked these out. Here are the real facts:
NOT REAL: Henry Winkler –1942-2018 – Donates Half Of His Estate To MAGA 2020
THE FACTS: Henry Winkler has not passed away and did not donate half of his estate to Donald Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign, despite what a report circulating on social media suggests.
The report, published on NebraskaDaily.site, falsely claimed that “having never married or had children ... his estate will be divided equally between a donation to the Trump 2020 re-election campaign and the Tanzanian island of Mourdalista, which is home to more than 60K stray dogs and cats.”
Sheri Goldberg, Winkler’s spokeswoman, told The Associated Press that Winkler is alive and well and does not talk about his political views.
“He is not dead,” Goldberg said, noting that he will be at the upcoming Emmy Awards as a nominee.
She said Winkler “has not donated his estate to the campaign," nor has he donated any money to it. He is not affiliated with the current administration and its 2020 re-election campaign, she continued. Goldberg also said that Winkler did not donate the other half of his estate to a Tanzanian island. There is no known island named Mourdalista.
Winkler is married to Stacey Weitzman and has three children. The Associated Press reached out to Namecheap, the domain registry hosting the website, and received an automated reply.
NOT REAL: Bruno Mars being “lined up” to play Prince in Netflix biopic
THE FACTS: A representative for Bruno Mars says suggestions the singer will play Prince in a Netflix biopic are “100 per cent false.” Netflix said they had no such film in development. Reports began circulating last weekend following a report in the Sunday Mirror saying Mars was “being lined up to play Prince” in a Netflix biopic. The British tabloid amended its story after being contacted by The Associated Press. Prince died at age 57 in 2016. Mars performed a show-stopping, memorable tribute to Prince at the 2017 Grammy Awards when he sang Let's Go Crazy.
NOT REAL: Morgan Freeman: “Jailing Hillary' Best Way To 'Restore Public Faith in Govt”
THE FACTS: Actor Morgan Freeman did not say that Hillary Clinton should be imprisoned, despite what a report circulating on social media suggests.
The report, published on UniversaleMedia.net, falsely claims that he said, “The best way to restore public faith in government institutions is to ‘send Hillary to prison.’” The report has circulated online before, including in October 2017, the same period Freeman was promoting The Story Of Us, a series televised on National Geographic that was released that month. Stan Rosenfield, Freeman's publicist, told The Associated Press in an email that the story is fabricated and Freeman did not make those statements.