"They have created stories that say I have stage 4 brain cancer […] and that I’m dying."
Star Trek fans, William Shatner isn't dying of brain cancer, and that's coming right from the source. Fearing that some Trekkies might think he was pulling an April Fools’ Day prank, the iconic actor waited until today (April 2) to jump on social media to call out a Facebook page he accuses of publishing "brain cancer" posts about the beloved captain of the Enterprise. Shatner included some images (below) pointing out the "horrible fake news" on his Instagram account. The actor wrote:
“I wanted to put this out yesterday but given the day [April Fools' Day] and the possibility that it would look like a joke I waited for today. There is a page on Facebook that is using AI to create horrible fake news stories about me. The page is by The Beanstalk Functions Group which is allegedly an Event Planner in South Africa.”
Shatner also wrote:
“Most of the stories use an AI image of me. Facebook Support will not remove the page. Each story is accompanied by a website link in the post that is hosted on Next.js where some of you may have seen my post to the CEO of that company on X asking him to remove these fake stories. None of these stories are true but they apparently seem genuine enough for fans to repost them across social media and send messages of support to me and my family all while the culprits behind the account make money.”
As an entertainment journalist, who values the solemn integrity of reporting accurate news, I am appalled that stories like these continue to gain momentum online, particularly when they're publicly denounced by their subjects — in this case by Shatner.
I visited the Beanstalk Group's Facebook page, so I can confirm it is full of AI-generated photos anchoring Shatner "cancer stories." These self-proclaimed "breaking news" uploads aren't fooling all the fans, though. In the comment sections of most the posts, Facebook users are crying foul with clever comments and GIFs denouncing the posts as being fake news.
I’m shocked that these erroneous posts aren't being removed. Better yet how about deleting social media accounts across all platforms which irresponsibly spew out fake news? Surely, today's desire for constant clicks and large quantities of pageviews doesn't outweigh truth and fairness in journalism, regardless of the times we are living in, even on a platform like Facebook, right?
Share your thoughts and comments with us about these AI-created photos and so-called breaking news stories declaring William Shatner is fighting brain cancer on the Redshirts Always Die Facebook and X pages. What's your take on the matter?
Live long and prosper, Trekkies!