CNBC.com photo composite

On the heels of fakesteve.blogspot.com (the fake Steve Jobs), and my own fakeJane (the fake me, see below), it turns out everything, EVERYTHING, is fake. Even the story about the Chinese buns made out of cardboard. Or is it? That's the problem with China these days. You believe the bad news, then when they tell you the bad news was a lie, you don't believe that either.

A reporter went undercover to "prove" that street vendors were stuffing meat-filled buns with chemically treated cardboard. The video originally aired on Beijing Television's Life Channel and has been playing all over the internet. Except it's not true. At least, that's what Chinese authorities claim. They've detained the reporter, whom they refer to as a "he," though in the video circulating on YouTube, that's no "he."

LATEST SUB-BLOG FROM FAKEJANE (a faux version of me, evil, bitter, insecure...ok, not that faux)
"I'm being forced to leave the office to go out and actually interview someone. In person. The bosses don't want that 'deer in the headlights' thing we do so much, where I interview an analyst via satellite as he stares straight into the camera against a neon lemon backdrop with corporate logos scattered about. What's wrong with that? Why do I have to get up out of my chair? I almost have this sudoku finished, and I hate actually having to meet people. They always want to shake your hand. Gross. Next thing I know they're going to want me to stay late for 'On the Money,' and that's about the time I'm supposed to be floating in the pool with a nicely chilled Pinot Grigio. Damn them. Damn them all."

ALSO FAKE... THE ONION.
Yet spoofing news has been a thriving business for The Onion for a very long time. On the Web site I see ads for VW, Corona, and CNN (heh, heh, I could make a comment here about CNN being on a fake news site.)

My favorite thing on www.theonion.com right now is how the American Medical Association has revealed that plastic surgery is about to reach a crucial turning point: "...after nearly a half-century of advancements in the field, doctors are now only 'a few years away' from being able to make patients look better, rather than worse, following plastic surgery. Soon, a person will leave the hospital with an appearance that is younger, healthier, and more attractive, instead of looking like some horrific, pinch-faced thing from another world."

FINALLY, WEDDING BELLS FOR BECKY QUICK?
Ok, another fake-out. Financial blogger David Kneupper speculates on his site, www.dkreport.blogspot.com, that while CNBC's Becky Quick on assignment in China, followed Boone Pickens around, they got married: "The CNBC co-anchor will go by her new name, Becky Quick-Pickens."

Comments? Funny Stories? Email