Any way to find out if my niece is serious?

[sweetonsno]

I'm also not familiar with this particular hoax (well, maybe I am, but I can't guess at it), so I'm not entirely sure on the proper course of action.

I would assume that unless the link is accompanied with a "can you believe folks actually believe this junk" or "this is ridiculous and false" caption, she might be buying into it. If the conspiracy theory is foolish but largely harmless (say, something you'd see in a gossip magazine), I'd ignore it.

If your niece is disseminating false information that could harm readers (for instance, suggesting that people mix bleach and ammonia to make an extra-effective cleaner), definitely post a correction. You wouldn't want her or her friends to inadvertently harm themselves.

If the false information is actually libelous, I'd also post a correction. It isn't about proving that she's wrong or silly, it's about protecting the innocent.

[Giggity]

Post the Snopes link debunking it.

[oogyda]

Same song, different band.

This argument has trotted through E-hell numerous times.

[Fleur]

Can someone PM me what this is? I have no idea and would like to know.

[Amava]

If I sent a Snopes link, it's because I don't want my friend to look stupid for propagating a hoax. It's not because "I know more/am better." You wouldn't want a friend to walk around with her dressed tucked into her pantyhose, and some of these emails/facebook posts/images are just that--potential embarrassment. Of course, I email the link in private. The same way I would quietly pull her aside and inform her of a pantyhose mishap. I wouldn't scream, "Holy heck, your panties are showing!!" =)

I think you make a good point, and a good analogy.
Another reason why I sometimes send people a Snopes link, is to avoid them from being upset, to reassure them. For example, if I see people being really upset about, to give an extreme example, Bonsai kittens, I am certainly going to tell them there exists no such thing.

We have an extra complication here, though. The OP is not sure whether the niece is serious or not. So if you allow me to run along with your wardrobe mishap analogy, I would say that this seems like a case of "Hmm, does she /mean/ for her cleavage to be so deep, or is she unaware that her shirt has unbuttoned?"

We had a discussion about a wardrobe malfunction a while ago on e-hell, and some people suggested luring the person towards a mirror, to make them find out for themselves.
There might be ways to accomplish something similar in the topic at hand, as well.
OP, you could reply something like: "Oh I saw that picture too, I found it on ..." and then include a link to either Snopes, or if you think the mere mention of "Snopes" is too much "haha I know better than you", you could link to certain newspaper articles describing and criticizing this whole conspiracy theory.
If it is what I am thinking of, there are quite a few sites beside Snopes who have written about it.

Alternatively, you could post something about it on /your/ wall so that it will appear in her feed. For example, a link to an article about a man who has been harassed about his alleged "acting" and "lying", and how he is suffering from this.

Other posters who are wondering what this is all about: I understand, if it is what I think it is, why the OP wouldn't want to go into detail, because it is rather politically loaded. But if you take a few crucial words from the OP and google "conspiracy hoax recent tragedy", you will quite certainly be able to get an idea what this is.

Of course, for all I know I am completely mistaken and talking about something completely different... But in that case the main gist of my advice to the OP still stands, and disregard the rest.

[RingTailedLemur]

I know what this is about and I would defriend anyone who was serious about these claims (in fact, a few years ago I did defriend someone over something similar).

OP, I suggest you just ask your niece by PM.

[Yvaine]

If I sent a Snopes link, it's because I don't want my friend to look stupid for propagating a hoax. It's not because "I know more/am better." You wouldn't want a friend to walk around with her dressed tucked into her pantyhose, and some of these emails/facebook posts/images are just that--potential embarrassment. Of course, I email the link in private. The same way I would quietly pull her aside and inform her of a pantyhose mishap. I wouldn't scream, "Holy heck, your panties are showing!!" =)

I think you make a good point, and a good analogy.
Another reason why I sometimes send people a Snopes link, is to avoid them from being upset, to reassure them. For example, if I see people being really upset about, to give an extreme example, Bonsai kittens, I am certainly going to tell them there exists no such thing.

Oh, this is a good point too. I sent a Snopes link for just that reason a few months ago--a friend was horribly upset over an animal abuse story that I happened to already know was false, so I sent her the link so she wouldn't worry about it anymore.

[JenJay]

If I sent a Snopes link, it's because I don't want my friend to look stupid for propagating a hoax. It's not because "I know more/am better." You wouldn't want a friend to walk around with her dressed tucked into her pantyhose, and some of these emails/facebook posts/images are just that--potential embarrassment. Of course, I email the link in private. The same way I would quietly pull her aside and inform her of a pantyhose mishap. I wouldn't scream, "Holy heck, your panties are showing!!" =)

I think you make a good point, and a good analogy.
Another reason why I sometimes send people a Snopes link, is to avoid them from being upset, to reassure them. For example, if I see people being really upset about, to give an extreme example, Bonsai kittens, I am certainly going to tell them there exists no such thing.

Oh, this is a good point too. I sent a Snopes link for just that reason a few months ago--a friend was horribly upset over an animal abuse story that I happened to already know was false, so I sent her the link so she wouldn't worry about it anymore.

That's when I share the snopes link, too, when it seems like the person is really upset and I can say "Hey, no worries, it isn't true!" I don't bother when the claim is outrageous and the person's history tells me that they believe it because they want to believe it. I tried one time with my Uncle who "shared" a link on facebook that was just, well, stupid. I replied with the snopes link and he replied back to me "You shouldn't believe everything you read online!" Erm....     . I figured if he couldn't see the wacky logic he'd just used on me then there was no way he'd get the logic in the snopes link. That was the last time I interacted with him online. lol

[Sharnita]

On one hand, I think some people who post this kind of thing are genuinely good people who are so worried/scared/confused that they get comfort from the idea that a conspiracy of some sort is the explanation rather than acknowledge that hings can be unredicatable and random.  OTOH, there are a lot of people who count on those individuals to push forward their own agenda.

If somebody isn't ashemed to put their own fears/theories/whatever on blast on their page then I am not sure you need to respond with a PM if you have a snopes link or something of that kind.  It can be a bit trickier when it is based on you are the "fact checker" but in this case I think posting a link right on their wall would be fine.  Now if it were something that was less of a lightning rod Imight PM because other people might not have noticed and I would not want to make it a big deal but if it is already a huge area of controvery I would go ahead and address it in the open.

[Twik]

There are many reasons why people send Snopes links. If I am correctly interpreting what the OP's niece is posting, it would be to let her know that she has been taken in by a vile, disgusting and cruel hoax (if she's serious) and is being cruel and callous herself (if joking).

There are some things passed on the internet that are not merely stupid, they are vile, but if people do not speak out against them, they become accepted by many people who want the world to be the way the hoaxes pretend they are.

[Lauren]

If it's what I'm thinking of, it's highly offensive and distressing, involving a government conspiracy, a high-profile incident, and a picture that appears to show the same person before and after the incident. Even if it's not what I'm thinking of, it's probably something else that makes the OP wonder "what the ...."

Exactly. I would have no hesitation in defriending anyone who posted something regarding this subject. If it was a close family member, I'd be messaging them asking if they actually believed that.

[gingerzing]

OP here - Thanks all. 
Part of the reason why I asked the question is that this is my niece who is not normally a fringe theory kind of gal. 
I have hid it and will let it pass for now.  If she starts more comments or posts about it, then I will PM and find out what is going on. 
I hate the idea of defriending her since she is family and is normally a really cool kiddo.  (21/22 is still a kiddo )
Now if this was a former high school classmate or something, then yes, would defriend right away. 

Thanks for all the feedback.  Sorry that it got a bit heated.  That was not my intention at all.

[Redneck Gravy]

You want to send her a message indicating you think something she might believe is "sillyness?"

That's not likely to go over well.  What do you hope to accomplish?

Probably the same thing people want to do when they send Snopes links.

I didn't know that was wrong?   

I am with PP I will send the link in private message/email.  I didn't know it was rude - I'm not saying I know more than you, I am trying to save you embarassment.

[Mental Magpie]

You want to send her a message indicating you think something she might believe is "sillyness?"

That's not likely to go over well.  What do you hope to accomplish?

Probably the same thing people want to do when they send Snopes links.

I didn't know that was wrong?   

I am with PP I will send the link in private message/email.  I didn't know it was rude - I'm not saying I know more than you, I am trying to save you embarassment.

I'll still post the actual links because I do not like the dissemination of incorrect information, not because I think I'm better than anybody else and want to show them how awesome smart I am.  If I can stop a bad rumor, I will, and I will not be ashamed of that because people think I want to one-up them.

[JenJay]

I usually post the link too, for the benefit of the other people who saw the original post. I word it in a friendly way ("I was worried about this, too, but apparently it's not true.") and not in a way that makes the poster look bad.