Gay pop star Lil Nas X attempted to troll Christians by posting a fake acceptance letter from Liberty University — complete with a signature from the late Jerry Falwell — claiming that he is “literally about to go to college for biblical studies.”
Instead, the corporate news media were the ones who fell for the prank.
Outlets including Billboard, Uproxx, and Vibe credulously repeated Lil Nas X’s claim — with their articles syndicated by Yahoo! and other platforms — before some of them issued a correction in the form of an “editor’s note.”
Billboard, which is owned by Penske Media, ran a headline and sub-head that clearly believed the singer, while the text of the story itself was more non-committal.
Uproxx ran an “editor’s note” after it credulously reported Lil Nas X’s claim. “This post has been updated to reflect that Nas is pretty clearly trolling,” the correction read. The millennial-focused pop culture site is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery.
Lil Nas X posted his fake acceptance letter to Instagram on Tuesday.
“I know some of yall hate me right now but i want yall to know im literally about to go to college for biblical studies in the fall. Not everything is a troll! Anyways IM A STUDENT AGAIN! LETS GOOO,” he wrote.
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The outlet Vibe magazine reported Lil Nas X’s claim with a straight face, saying the singer will be “fully diving into his ‘Christian era,’ as the music star has announced that he will be a participant in a biblical studies program to begin next fall.”
Meanwhile, US Weekly called the singer’s letter “potentially fake,” while adding the “validity of Lil Nas X’s college acceptance letter is up for debate.”
The celebrity gossip publication correctly noted that Jerry Falwell died in 2007.
As Breitbart News reported, Lil Nas X recently launched a publicity blitz for his next song, “J Christ,” which features imagery depicting himself hanging on a cross like Jesus.
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