News gathering: Elaborate hoaxes difficult to detect

A recent video posted on YouTube ostensibly about an embarrassing fiasco at a Shell corporate party turned out to be bogus, the work of Greenpeace and their ally. But even a diligent reporter could be fooled by the hoax as it was bundled in an elaborate sequence including followup e-mails and a referral to a cleverly constructed fake Shell website. -db

From a commentary for the Poynter Institute, July 19, 2012, by Jeff Sonderman.

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