10:39 AM
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Hardcore Harry Potter fans went up in arms over a parody that people misunderstood once it became a popular share on Facebook.
The Onion, a publication that satirizes news items, printed the “Final Minutes of Last Harry Potter Movie To Be Split Into Seven Separate Films” and all heck broke loose when people began sharing the story on Facebook.
Diehard Pott-heads began protesting to no end. Hudson Hongo, a writer, thought that he should capitalize on this debate and countless others, many of which are fanned on the popular social networking site, so he just created a website called Literally Unbelievable.
Hongo’s website interprets stories that The Onion runs that are then become misunderstood when shared on Facebook. The impetus for his site began with a May 18 story “Planned Parenthood Opens $8 Billion Abortionplex.“ The story also featured a picture of young teen girls and with a looming sign overhead that read “Abortions, 8,864,902 Terminated.” Folks were outraged over the fake story and a no-holds-barred debate began on Facebook from both genders. Many were convinced the article was real which talked about a sprawling abortion facility that would terminate pregnancies with rapid-fire results.
“When I found out that people were reacting the same way to many other Onion articles, I felt the phenomenon was worth documenting and put it up my blog. Y’know … for science,” Hongo told CNN.
But is he mocking the gullible? Hongo admits that he is somewhat sympathetic to those individuals who might be satirically impaired. “I think folks are willing to believe Onion articles because the real news so often seems unreal these days,” he explained in an email to CNN.
Meanwhile, back on the Potter front: I’m sure that I do not stand alone when I say, “End it already!” Poof, be gone! I would love to wave my magic wand to bring the curtain down on the coming-of-age fantasy series that has frankly run out of steam.
Readers, what do you think about the rise in Facebook users misinterpreting humorous fictional stories?
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