Mariah Carey dead at 43? Twitter death hoax claims another victim

The Twitter death toll rose again today after a CNN parody account with over 20,000 followers announced the death of singer Mariah Carey.

Omg RT @CNN__TV: Mariah Carey is dead at age 43. She was found dead in her home today around noon. See Link for more details.

— nah you good (@PrettyLabels) June 19, 2012

Carey is very much alive and won’t be 43 until next year. Some fans caught on right away:

https://twitter.com/TheLavaLizard/status/215140973469118466

But many didn’t realize the age was wrong and failed to read the bio on the fake CNN account: “Parody account not affiliated with cnn.”

https://twitter.com/hellychowski/status/215136909452775424

https://twitter.com/alr5k/status/215138583219150848

https://twitter.com/g0Ideneye/status/215144464606445568

RIP Mariah Carey.. Very sad..

— ♥ Ragini Gunjan ♪ (@RAGiniGUNjan) June 19, 2012

https://twitter.com/CAM3_Prodigy/status/215137026612264960

https://twitter.com/wildvirginftw/status/215137618986405888

When CNN editorial director Richard Griffiths discovered the rumor was circulating, he quickly put it to rest.

Claim Mariah Carey dead is false tweet. @CNN__TV twitter account is fake account, NOT part of #CNN.

— Richard T. Griffiths (@griffiths) June 19, 2012

RIP Mariah Carey death hoax.