What is weirdest than having at least 10 prominent world celebrities die on the same day and have their obituaries published all together on the same website? Certainly to find out that none of them is actually dead.
Solidarity with former colleagues @RFI, which just accidentally published stacks of draft obits for people who are very much not dead—inc Queen Elizabeth, Raul Castro, Brigitte Bardot & more—complete with dates they were last updated & alternative leads if they die of Covid-19 😬 pic.twitter.com/zUSqVU0X4Q
— Jessica Phelan (@JessicaLPhelan) November 16, 2020
On Radio France Internationale's website, many people were shocked to see some of the world's most famous names mourned all on the same day; Queen Elizabeth II, the 39th US President Jimmy Carter, the Brazilian football legend Pele, Cuba's Rahul Castro, Iran's Ali Khamenei and some of the film industry's iconic figures: Sofia Loren, Brigitte Bardot, and Clint Eastwood.
RFI présente ses excuses pour la publication involontaire de plusieurs nécrologies sur son site https://t.co/GvKuLbNzKb Un problème technique a entraîné la publication de nombreuses nécrologies sur notre site. Nos équipes techniques sont mobilisées pour rectifier ce bug majeur.
— RFI (@RFI) November 16, 2020
Translation: "RFI apologizes for the unintended publication of several obituaries on its site. A technical problem has resulted in the publication of numerous obituaries on our site. Our technical teams are mobilized to rectify this major bug."
However, the obituaries that appeared suddenly on the French website were removed shortly, before RFI issued an apology saying that switching to a new content management system that runs their website caused many unpublished drafts to appear on the website.
The nightmare of every news channel happened this morning to French radio RFI: a technical error caused it to accidentally published all of its obituaries at once, killing off politicians, pop stars and even the Queen! https://t.co/SnQ1a5QAtD
— Catherine Bennett (@cfbennett2) November 16, 2020
RFI apologized to all the people mentioned and to their loved ones who might have been affected by the incorrect news.
Yet, the apology didn't spare RFI the online discussion, as social media commentators weighed heavily on the matter.
Reacting to the false news of her death, French singer and actress Line Renaud left a tweet to her fans saying that she's in "great shape and that she is up to new projects."
Oui et je suis en pleine forme !!! 😉 J'ai encore tellement de projets à mener que, le moment venu, ce texte ne sera plus du tout à jour ! 😘 https://t.co/vkgTuBbNQC
— Line Renaud (@linerenaud) November 16, 2020
Translation: "Yes and I am in great shape!! I still have so many projects to carry out that, when my time comes, this text will not be up to date at all!"
