These Are the 5 Biggest Fake News Stories of the Year

Centering on politics and crime
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 30, 2016 4:27 PM CST
These Are the 5 Biggest Fake News Stories of the Year
President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump shake hands following their meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 10, 2016.   (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

BuzzFeed analyzed news and "news" shared on Facebook to come up with the biggest fake news stories of the year—the 100% fake articles (from fake-news websites) that got the most shares, reactions, and comments. (Articles that simply misrepresented the news were not included as fake.) Of the top 50 fake news articles, 23 were politics-related. The second-biggest fake news category: crime. The top five fake politics and crime stories and how many Facebook reactions, comments, and shares they got:

  1. "Obama Signs Executive Order Banning the Pledge of Allegiance in Schools Nationwide": 2,177,000
  2. "Women Arrested for Defecating on Boss' Desk After Winning the Lottery": 1,765,000

  1. "Pope Francis Shocks World, Endorses Donald Trump for President, Releases Statement": 961,000
  2. "Trump Offering Free One-Way Tickets to Africa & Mexico for Those Who Wanna Leave America": 802,000
  3. "Cinnamon Roll Can Explodes Inside Man's Butt During Shoplifting Incident": 765,000
Click for the top 10. (More fake news stories.)

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