On Friday, May 12, a wild spread of misinformation on Jamie Foxx’s health condition was finally shut down by Foxx’s daughter, Corinne Foxx, in a statement she posted to her Instagram story.
Media eyes have been on the actor/artist since his relatives announced he had a “medical complication” in April. Since then, many “news” blogs tended to take any information they could get on Foxx, and reported it without taking any type of reputability into consideration.
While other news sources highlighted Foxx was healing, many popular Twitter verified blogs reported otherwise. Several sources such as The Daily Loud and RapTV, reported that his family was actually “preparing for the worst” as he “remained hospitalized.”
“Sad to see how the media runs wild,” Corinne Foxx wrote on Instagram Stories. “My dad has been out of the hospital for weeks, recuperating.”
“In fact, he was playing pickleball yesterday!” She added. “Thanks for everyone’s prayers and support.”
Following this statement, The Daily Loud made an apology on Twitter.
“We would like to apologize for the misinformation regarding Jamie Foxx’s condition,” the blog said. “We unfortunately thought the source we had was real but it was not.”
Many of the sources spreading the false information cited a report found in gossip blog, RadarOnline; which raises a concern of the level of skepticism some outlets truly have when it comes to their reporting-especially if they are labeling themselves as “news” sources.
Consider The Daily Loud-with over 1.8 million followers on Twitter, they market themselves as being “one of the leading hip-hop websites in the country.”
“Premiering and promoting new artists from all walks of life,” they say in their website’s ‘About Me’ section. “The Daily Loud aims to be your #1 source for new and upcoming hip-hop music and news.”
The problem with online media today-and especially popular sites-is that the clicks and social engagement on their pages are more of priority to them over factual information, consideration or human decency. That’s because the clicks equal cash.
It’s even more problematic that both The Daily Loud and RapTV are actually owned and run by white men. It wouldn’t seem that way when looking at the content that they post which mainly centers around Black people, but is it truly surprising that white men are profiting off of Black content and misreporting Jamie Foxx’s health status?
This situation reminds me of the tragic death of Kobe and Gigi Bryant back in January of 2020, and how media sources were like vultures with the news, trying to get their story out first and retain the most views. These news outlets completely disregarded a family’s privacy during the worst moments of their lives and reported misinformation because they were once again too greedy for clicks.
The fact that misinformation like this is spread so quickly across social media can be dangerous for those who are affected by the fake news. It shows that in this age, not only do journalists have to remain skeptical but also the general public because a verified mark on Twitter doesn’t mean a page is truly a reputable source-it just means they had money to pay for a blue check.
