WAPT Jackson, MS

[Bob Nelson]

On 11/12/06, Sean Smyth <sean.smyth@yahoo.com> wrote:

> My question: Has any other TV station been "had" in such a manner
> before? Other than the Opie and Anthony guys floating in the back of
> NYC live shots, of course.

Media satirists Negativland cancelled a tour in 1988 because they
figured it wouldn't
make money. Then they noticed a story somewhere about 16 year old David Brom
in Minnesota who murdered his family. The band told KPIX-TV in San Francisco
that their song "Christianity Is Stupid" may have inspired the teen to murder
his family and that "federal authorities" made them cancel their tour and they
couldn't leave their homes in the Oakland/Concord, CA area.

Reporter Hal Eisner interviewed them. Band member Don Joyce was heard
to say that
it was "ridiculous" that the song might have inspired the boy to do his evil
deed. "It's hard to listen to the cut and not laugh."

Then other media outlets picked up on the "story" and it spread quickly even
though most outlets simply repeated the story and didn't bother to check it
out further. The hoax was featured on the band's 1989 album "Helter Stupid"
and a 1990s video by the band featured the KPIX "Eyewitness News" story on them.

http://www.answers.com/topic/helter-stupid