A recent rumor that the corn kid from TikTok died has been making the rounds. Fortunately, it’s not true. The boy, whose first name is Tariq, received acclaim from a viral video in which he proclaimed his love for corn. Since then, he’s been profiled by The New York Times and found himself on the talk show circuit.
Did the TikTok corn kid get shot?
The corn kid from TikTok didn’t die. Rumors arose from a social media post that contained a faked image of an NPR story proclaiming, “7 Year Old “Corn Kid Found Dead Last Sunday in Gang Related Shooting.” A big giveaway that this is fake is the conspicuous lack of hyphens and disregard for SEO in the headline.
Unfortunately, many people didn’t fact-check to see if that article exists (it doesn’t). So, many were convinced that Tariq was a victim of gang violence. Fortunately, he’s just fine, and neither he nor his family has come to any harm.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen rumors of a viral celebrity’s death. If you’re the slightest bit famous, someone will inevitably try to start a hoax that you’ve died. We didn’t find a definitive origin for this one, but we assume it was made just to troll people as opposed to being a complicated scheme.
Update (July 10, 2023): It seems like the rumor that the Corn Kid is dead is making the rounds again. Our research indicates that he is still alive and well as of this update.
Again, we strongly encourage everyone to employ critical thinking and verify information from reliable sources before propagating such distressing news. Unsubstantiated rumors not only generate unnecessary panic but can also cause distress to the subject and their families.
