Scammers used AI to tell the world I was dead. The obits, authored by fictional journalists, were part of an elaborate death hoax created by anonymous scammers using my name as clickbait. No one could say, exactly, who was behind the death hoax, but most everyone agreed it was clickbait. Clicks lead to money.”Dittersdorf’s explanation reminded me that, on YouTube, I had to watch a short Expedia ad before one of my death hoax videos. The death hoax had forced me to look at my life with a rare, bird’s-eye perspective and underlined how important being a journalist was to me.

Source: Los Angeles Times February 21, 2024 18:36 UTC