Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Angelou Alive, Well, Despite Reports

TMZ reports poet's illness, Twitterers add 'RIP'

By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff

Posted Oct 5, 2009 1:24 AM CDT

(Newser) – Contrary to reports by TMZ and scores of Tweets and re-Tweets, Maya Angelou is alive and well. The gossip site reported over the weekend that the poet missed a Los Angeles awards show because she had been hospitalized. In fact, she hadn't been invited to the presentation. The mix-up exhibited Twitter’s formidable power as an echo chamber. The poet quickly became the top trending topic on the site, with some members adding “RIP” to their Tweets, Reuters reports.

Author Maya Angelou delivers a tribute to South African Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu in Washington last year.
Author Maya Angelou delivers a tribute to South African Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu in Washington last year.   (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Poet Maya Angelou is alive and well, despite a TMZ report of her hospitalization and some Tweeters' RIPs.
Poet Maya Angelou is alive and well, despite a TMZ report of her hospitalization and some Tweeters' RIPs.   (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert,File)
Hale and hearty Maya Angelou.
Hale and hearty Maya Angelou.   (AP Photo/Chuck Burton, file)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
A snapshot of the day's best news stories.
 
COMMENTS
Showing 2 of 2 comments
proud_prude
Oct 6, 2009 12:29 PM CDT
If you fritter away your tirne on twitter, your future is unlikely to glitter.
NxBigmouthery
Oct 5, 2009 7:38 AM CDT
Twitter is aptly named.

More Newser Stories

Here's the 'Most Annoying Tweet Imaginable'

Is Each of Your Twitter Followers Worth $2.50?

Qantas Has 'Epic PR Fail' With Twitter Campaign

Fired Twitter Ghostwriter Gets Hilarious Revenge

Inside the Army's Rules for Twitter, Facebook


NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   Betty Confidential   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Fark   |   Timelines   |   The Frisky   |   Geek Sugar   |   NewsOne