According to a report that is circulating rapidly via social media, 234 people have died after eating Patti LaBelle sweet potato pies contaminated with Tetrodotoxin ‘a venomous substance found in the blue ringed octopus and puff fish’. Supposedly, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) discovered that around 100,000 of the ‘famous Patti’s Sweet Potato Pie’ made in October and November were tainted. The report claims that the contaminated pies were made in the same factory in which ‘thousands of puffer fish are devenomized and prepared’.
However, the claims in the report are utter nonsense. No such deaths have occurred and no contamination issue involving Patti LaBelle Pies has been reported by the CDC or any other credible agency or news source. The false report is the work of the fake-news website Reportquickly.com. Nothing published on the site should be taken seriously. The site includes the following in the footer of its pages:
Reportquickly.com is a combination of real shocking news and satire news. Please note that articles written on this site are for entertainment and satirical purposes only.
However, many site visitors will not scroll down far enough to see the disclaimer and may share the site’s fake stories in the mistaken belief that they are genuine news.
There are many fake-news websites like Reportquickly.com that, between them, produce an ongoing stream of nonsense, much of which circulates virally via social media. It is thus wise to verify any strange or unusual ‘news’ stories that come your way before you share them with others. A quick search via a reputable online news portal will usually reveal if a circulating story is true.
Original Source : http://www.hoax-slayer.net/fake-news-report-claims-hundreds-dead-after-eating-patti-labelle-pie/