Three recent stories are prime examples of how important it is for the media to confront the reality of rumors in the age of the Internet.

One week before comedian Bernie Mac passed away, text messages and e-mails were flying all over the country with reports that he had died. I was in New York, and friends and colleagues from Chicago to Dallas to Los Angeles were saying they knew for sure that the 50-year-old comedian was dead.

The rumor mill was so hot that his publicist had t ...

( Back to Article )