Morgan Freeman with "10 Item or Less" co-star Paz Vega courtesy CynSimp (CC-SA 2.0)

Dec. 16: CNN: Breaking News: actor Morgan Freeman has passed away in his Burbank home…

Actually, Morgan Freeman didn’t really die yesterday.  But because it went viral and was reportedly scooped by CNN, it took time to sort out the details.  Some even invented conspiracies that the story was true but press agents (or Martians?) were trying to bury the headline.

The fake story came from a blogger who knew that no one fact-checks during the first wave on the web.  The guy did reportedly say he apologizes to Freeman and CNN but not for his humor.

Although he allegedly did admit to crossing the line.

Not exactly Orson Wells and the War of the Worlds radio joke, but the social network’s still growing.