Hoax about Purdue hoops reels in talk show host,
newspaper
By Michael Pointer
December 19, 2003
An Internet parody site and a national talk show host
combined to make for an interesting week around the Purdue men's
basketball office.
The Hoosier Gazette (hoosiergazette.com) -- which bills
itself as "Indiana's first source for inaccurate news and commentary"--
posted a fictitious story last month detailing the Boilermakers' signing
of Jason Paul Smith, a 6-6 blue-chip prospect from Yorktown High
School.
The Gazette "reported" a mix-up when Purdue received the
NCAA letter of intent. It was signed by Jason Parker Smith, a 5-6,
nonathletic geek at the school.
Little was said about the story until it was posted by
fark.com -- a site that specializes in satirical articles -- and Jim Rome
mentioned it on his Monday radio show. It was unclear if Rome believed the
report was legitimate at first, although he did say later in the program
it had been a hoax.
Purdue fans began posting messages on Internet chat room
sites, wondering about the story. They weren't the only ones fooled.
The San Diego Union-Tribune ran a bylined story detailing
the incident, complete with quotes from the Hoosier Gazette's original
story.
Elliot Bloom, Purdue's basketball sports information
director, said he received about 25 calls from national media thinking it
was serious.
"I was so sick of talking about it," Bloom said. "I wanted
to hang up on a lot of people, to be honest."
Gene Keady's response? "He looked at it and laughed," Bloom
said.
Call Star reporter Michael Pointer at 1-317-444-6641.
