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“RIP Kanye West” Search Falsely Suggests Kanye West Died

The media has not been Kanye West’s best friend since his VMA incident in September, but no outlet has proven as vicious as the world of Twitter.

West became a hot topic on Twitter and Google searches yesterday, with the phrases “RIP Kanye West” and “Kanye West RIP” generating particular steam. All were related to a false rumor that West had died in a car accident, which observers say was first generated to drive traffic to unrelated websites.

Never picked up by a credible outlet and then outright denied by those close to Kanye, including girlfriend Amber Rose, it is clear that the rumor gained traction simply due to the power of Twitter.

This has happened repeatedly on the social networking website; when celebrities for whom there is no immediate wave of buzz become trending topics, the first (and grim) thought on many users’ mind is that they passed away. This leads to “RIP” Tweets, which only brings more trending interest to the celebrity and more false assumptions that something tragic occurred.

Bob Barker, for instance, became the subject of false death rumors when he hosted an episode of WWE RAW. As those not watching RAW were unclear why Barker suddenly made waves in the world of Twitter, they initially assumed the worst–that he died.

Written by Brian Cantor

Brian Cantor is the editor-in-chief for Headline Planet. He has been a leading reporter in the music, movie, television and sporting spaces since 2002.

Brian's reporting has been cited by major websites like BuzzFeed, Billboard, the New Yorker and The Fader -- and shared by celebrities like Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj.

Contact Brian at brian.cantor[at]headlineplanet.com.

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  1. Let me start by saying that I have never done anything like this before and that when I need to say or speak to someone and the time or place does not present itself
    I usually bite my tounge until it does.
    I sure would like to have met Mr.West and said the following: Kanye I really enjoy meeting people, I really do then I would say this: Kanye”POWER” There is A big difference between A person with power and A powerful person. Which one are you ?

  2. That chick is just gorgeous, I mean a lot seems to think she is not to clever but that’s just an act, it does take some skills to become one of the most famous people in the world.

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