Just for the record, I absolutely hate newspapers and broadcasters who think playing April Fools jokes on their readers or viewers is a good idea.
The former Noblesville (Ind.) Ledger used to run an April Fools joke story on page 1 every year. When I was working on the suburban desk of The Indianapolis News, I routinely had to explain to my editor that the stories were bogus when he assigned me to follow up on them.
Deliberately presenting phony "news" in the name of humor constitutes a breach of trust. Any news agency that would do it, begs the question of what other falsehoods would they put before their readers or viewers if they thought it was funny or in the public interest.
Speaking as someone with more than 40 years of experience with newspapers, I have a hard time respecting any editor who indulges in this childish practice.
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