In the age of social media, it’s become so much easier for fake news to spread. And even credible legacy outlets have been fooled as the World Wide Leader in Sports has fallen victim to made up news from troll accounts.
The spread of false news can have a gargantuan effect on all parties involved, and another incident over the Memorial Day weekend involving Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis is another glaring example of the issue.
A tweet by NFL aggregator account Dov Kleiman featured a picture of 26-year-old dancer and content creator Hayden Hopkins announcing her pregnancy. Kleiman’s post said that the 70-year-old Davis was the father of Hopkins’ child and congratulated the two.
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The news spread on social media quickly getting picked up by other NFL aggregator accounts. X (formerly Twitter) users gave their reactions with many saying that the relationship between the two was “wrong,” while others were telling users to leave the couple alone.
The comments on Hopkins’ Instagram post accused her of going after the money of Davis, who has a net worth of $2.3 billion, according to Forbes.
“Life on easy mode,” one of the comments read.
“Smart girl! 💲💲💲💲 Cha Ching!” wrote another user on Instagram.Â
But hours later, Hopkins posted a story on her Instagram denying that Davis was the father and that the two were even in a relationship.
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“Reports of Mark Davis being the father of my child are widely untrue,” Hopkins wrote. “I was pictured sitting next to him at a game in 2022 and have endured false rumors of a romantic relationship since. I was just a guest sitting in the owner’s box with other friends.”
https://t.co/bkao6CAhqF pic.twitter.com/KUglQeDNcN
— Adam Hill (@AdamHillLVRJ) May 27, 2024
Hopkins added that she’s expecting a baby with her partner, Joey, in the fall.
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Following Hopkins’ post, Kleiman took down the post on X then proceeded to post other news about the NFL.Â
Oh dear god, Dov Kleiman falsely reported that a 26-year-old was carrying Mark Davis’ baby???
This goes beyond his standard bullshit. Can’t believe he DMd me to ask why I thought he was a hack. pic.twitter.com/0zjfi7tmln
— Kacy Sager (@THESagerbomb) May 28, 2024
But the damage that the account’s post and subsequent other posts had been done, including Pat McAfee alluding to the fake news on commentary on WWE Raw on Monday night.
Someone forgot to tell Pat the Mark Davis rumor isn’t true… pic.twitter.com/GIQCrR2JO4
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 28, 2024
This isn’t the first time that Kleiman has caused a stir for his posts and aggregation. Last year, the account posted that the trade for Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets was “done,” citing former ESPN staple Trey Wingo as a source. Kleiman’s tweet earned the spotlight and received vitriol for being premature — though Rodgers was eventually traded to the Jets.
Another reason for the backlash against Kleiman is that the manager of the account is not a visible member in the sports media space. Many have speculated that the account’s manager isn’t even a real person. A New York Post report in 2023 wrote that the aggregator is a real person based out of Israel who has worked in outlets such as BroBible and OutKick. The account sent The Post a picture of Kleiman as another form of proof.
Though given the way that social media and technology are these days, it’s hard to believe that a picture provides outright legitimacy that the man photographed is the person running the account.
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