Editorial: Rumour mill on the web

There was not a lion on the loose in Rotorua, social media helped the rumour spread like wild fire. Photo/Thinkstock

Rumours of a lion on the loose in Rotorua caused a brief moment of excitement earlier in the week.

One call to Paradise Valley Wildlife Park quickly dashed any hopes of a Rotorua lion hunt a la 1986 - all their lions were accounted for.

But among Rotorua social media users the story persisted - to the point one woman was worried about taking her dog for a walk.

Social media is awesome. Despite the relatively short time we've had sites like Facebook and Twitter, they have become an integral part of many people's daily routines - including mine. They allow instant communication and information sharing on a massive scale, which can often be used for good.

That means false or inaccurate information also spreads like wildfire. As we saw, to a modest degree, with the lion story this week.

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Outlandish rumours such as the lion or (as regularly happens for some bizarre reason) false reports of celebrity deaths pop up every now and then online. The most seasoned social media users treat them with caution, usually checking with a credible news source before believing or spreading them.

However, plenty of others aren't so responsible and I suppose you can understand why - a lion on the loose is just too great a story not to share.

The problem was, it wasn't true.

In this case, the consequences weren't serious, bar a few concerned locals.

Do social media users, especially those with large followings, have a responsibility to stop and think before clicking "share" or "retweet"? Or is it a case of user beware? One thing's for sure, it's a reminder not to believe everything you read on the internet.