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Culture March 22, 2018

William Shatner calls out Facebook for death hoax on messenger app

PHOTO: William Shatner arrives for the 27th Annual Simply Shakespeare at Freud Playhouse, UCLA, Sept. 18, 2017, in Westwood, Calif.
Gabriel Olsen/Getty Images
William Shatner arrives for the 27th Annual Simply Shakespeare at Freud Playhouse, UCLA, Sept. 18, 2017, in Westwood, Calif.
AUTHOR PHOTO: Michael Rothman By Michael Rothman

William Shatner took matters into his own hands when he learned about his alleged "death": he got one of the most powerful tech companies in the world to take notice and make a change.

Shatner was alerted to his alleged death by a fan on Twitter, who tagged the icon with the caption, "@WilliamShatner I thought you might want to know you're dead."

See: William Shatner through the years Watch: William Shatner Debunks Major 'Star Trek' Myth in 'Good Morning America' Interview

The post included a picture from some sponsored advertisement on Facebook that said the "beloved Sci-Fi actor [was] found" dead. The timing of the fake news is curious given Shatner turns 87 today.

"Hey @facebook isn’t this your messenger app?" he wrote on Twitter in response. "Thought you were doing something about this?"

Hey @facebook isn’t this your messenger app? What’s up with you allowing this Acocet Retail Sales ad to pass your muster? Thought you were doing something about this? https://t.co/1fFriJ8PRu

— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) March 21, 2018

The company immediately took notice and Facebook's director of product management, Rob Leathern, contacted Shatner to say, "Thanks for letting us know about this. We have removed this ad and Page from Facebook."

Hi, I'm from Facebook. Thanks for letting us know about this. We have removed this ad and Page from Facebook

— Rob Leathern ?? (@robleathern) March 21, 2018

The Shatner hoax comes as Facebook is dealing with a data breach and continued reports of fake news that took place leading up to the 2016 presidential election.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has repeatedly said the tech giant is working on fixing these issues.

Shatner responded to Facebook the only way the legendary star could: "Thank you. I’m not planning on dying so please continue to block those kinds of ads."

Thank you. I’m not planning on dying so please continue to block those kinds of ads. https://t.co/9f3k3uN5z4

— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) March 21, 2018

Happy 87th birthday to the incredible @WilliamShatner, #StarTrek's Captain Kirk on the original series, animated series, and 7 movies. He's written Star Trek books, produced Trek documentaries, and amazes us all every year with neverending new projects. #BetterLateThanNever pic.twitter.com/vwvcwSn7RM

— TrekMovie.com (@TrekMovie) March 22, 2018

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