Just Because It's Trending Doesn't Mean It's True

Pro Wrestling Is Fake & So Are Reports ISIS Is Targeting WWE's 'Survivor Series'

  • by: Alan Duke
  • (Sun, 22 Nov 2015 16:06:05 Z)

Wrestling fans converging on Atlanta's Philips Arena Sunday for the WWE's "Survivor Series" extravaganza can calm down. The media reports that ISIS has specifically threatened to attack the event are untrue, based on a hoax circulated through social media.

A local Atlanta TV reporter -- who has a great reputation for accuracy -- dug into the rumor, prompting the FBI to assure the public there was "no no specific or credible information involving a threat " against the Sunday event in Downtown Atlanta.

The reports, which were first seen in a now retracted report by the International Business Times, quoted a purported posting by Anonymous, the hacker group that has vowed to take down all ISIS social media accounts. The report said the group had discovered ISIS plans to attack events at seven cities on Sunday, including the wrestling event in Atlanta. But a main Anonymous Twitter account disputed that.

And to be more specific, Anonymous said the Atlanta threat reports were fake.

Increased security has been added around the wrestling event as a precaution, but all of those TV live shots can stand down now.

Here's a video of the only explosions you'll see at the "Survivor Series" event.

Lead Stories' scours social nets for trending Anonymous content. Type Anonymous in our site search box for a while bunch, or scroll down for the latest top content.

About the author:

Editor-in-Chief Alan Duke co-founded Lead Stories after ending a 26-year career with CNN, where he mainly covered entertainment, current affairs and politics. Duke closely covered domestic terrorism cases for CNN, including the Oklahoma City federal building bombing, the UNABOMBER and search for Southeast bomber Eric Robert Rudolph. CNN moved Duke to Los Angeles in 2009 to cover the entertainment beat. Duke also co-hosted a daily podcast with former HLN host Nancy Grace, "Crime Stories with Nancy Grace" and hosted the podcast series "Stan Lee's World: His Real Life Battle with Heroes & Villains." You'll also see Duke in many news documentaries, including on the Reelz channel, CNN and HLN.

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