Wikipedia - Benutzerbeiträge [de]

Snopes

2016-11-24T06:55:21Z

24.107.5.117: /* Accuracy */

{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2016}}
{{redirect|Snopes|the novels by William Faulkner|Snopes trilogy}}
{{Infobox Website
| name = Urban Legends Reference Pages (snopes.com)
| logo = Snopes.svg
| logo_size = 252px
| logo_alt = Snopes logo
| url = {{URL|www.snopes.com/}}
| type = Reference pages
| commercial = Yes
| registration = Required only on forums
| owner = Barbara and David P. Mikkelson<ref name="FactCheck"/>
| author = Barbara and David P. Mikkelson
| launch date = 1995
| current status = Active
| alexa = {{DecreasePositive}} 1,515 ({{as of|2016|9|6|alt=September 2016}})<ref name="alexa">{{cite web|url=http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/snopes.com|title= Snopes.com Site Info|publisher=[[Alexa Internet]]|accessdate= April 1, 2014}}</ref>

}}
'''Snopes.com''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|n|oʊ|p|s}}, also known as the '''Urban Legends Reference Pages''', is a liberal advocacy blog that also covers [[urban legend]]s, Internet rumors, [[Email forward|e-mail forwards]], and other stories of unknown or questionable origin.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4819108 |title=Snopes.com: Debunking Myths in Cyberspace] |publisher=[[NPR]] |date=August 27, 2005 |accessdate=August 27, 2005}}</ref> It describes itself as a resource for validating and debunking such stories in American popular culture,<ref>{{cite book |last=Henry |first=Neil |title=American Carnival: Journalism Under Siege in an Age of New Media |publisher=University of California Press |year=2007 |p=285}}</ref> receiving 300,000 visits a day.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/15/technology/personaltech/15pogue-email.html |last=Pogue |first=David |work=[[The New York Times]] |title=At Snopes.com, Rumors Are Held Up to the Light |date=July 15, 2010 |accessdate=July 16, 2010}}</ref>

Snopes.com was created by Barbara and David Mikkelson, a [[California]] couple who met in the alt.folklore.urban [[newsgroup]].<ref name="nyt100405">{{cite news |author=[[Brian Stelter]]|work=The New York Times|title=Debunkers of Fictions Sift the Net |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/technology/05snopes.html |date=April 4, 2010 |accessdate=April 5, 2010}}</ref> The site is organized by topic and includes a message board where stories and pictures of questionable veracity may be posted. The Mikkelsons founded the [[San Fernando Valley]] Folklore Society and were credited as the owners of that site until 2005.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=55;t=000490 |publisher=snopes.com| title=Messageboard post}}</ref>

==History==
David Mikkelson used the username "snopes" (the name of a family of often unpleasant people in the works of [[William Faulkner]])<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/info/faq.asp#snopes |title=Frequently Asked Questions |quote=What are 'snopes'? |publisher=Snopes.com |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref><ref name="Chron">{{cite news |first=Paul |last=Bond |work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]] |title=Web site separates fact from urban legend |url=http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Web-site-separates-fact-from-urban-legend-2800717.php |date=September 7, 2002 |accessdate=July 17, 2012}}</ref> in the [[Usenet]] newsgroup alt.folklore.urban.<ref name="Porter">{{cite book |last=Porter |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KQLaAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA48&lpg=PA48 |title=Internet Culture |chapter=Usenet Communities and the Cultural Politics of Information |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2013 |page=48 |isbn=978-1-135-20904-9 |accessdate=September 13, 2016 |quote=The two most notorious trollers in AFU, [[Ted Frank]] and snopes, are also two of the most consistent posters of serious research.}}</ref> The Mikkelsons created the Snopes site in 1995,<ref name="Seipp"/> and later worked on the site full-time.<ref name="nyt100405"/><ref name=Chron/><ref name="Seipp">{{cite news |first=Cathy |last=Seipp |authorlink=Catherine Seipp |work=[[National Review]] |title=Where Urban Legends Fall |url=http://www.nationalreview.com/seipp/seipp200407210830.asp |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040812075515/http://www.nationalreview.com/seipp/seipp200407210830.asp |archivedate=July 23, 2004 |accessdate=February 7, 2014 |date=July 21, 2004}}</ref>

A television pilot based on the site, called ''Snopes: Urban Legends'', was completed with American actor [[Jim Davidson (actor)|Jim Davidson]] as host, but major networks passed on the project.<ref name="Chron"/>

==Main site==
Snopes aims to debunk or confirm widely spread urban legends. The site has been referenced by news media and other sites, including [[CNN]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Nissen |first=Beth |url=http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/10/03/rec.false.rumors/index.html |title=Hear the rumor? Nostradamus and other tall tales |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=October 3, 2001 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> [[Fox News Channel]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/2006/10/31/teens-abusing-energy-boosting-drinks-doctors-fear.html |title=Teens Abusing Energy-Boosting Drinks, Doctors Fear |publisher=[[Fox News Channel]] |date=October 31, 2006 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> [[MSNBC]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/17798063/ |title=Urban Legends Banned-April Fools'! |publisher=[[MSNBC]] |date=April 1, 2007 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> and Australia's [[ABC Television|ABC]] on its ''[[Media Watch (TV program)|Media Watch]]'' program. Snopes' popular standing is such that some chain e-mail hoaxes claim to have been "checked out on 'Snopes.com'{{-"}} in an attempt to discourage readers from seeking verification.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/muslim.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Who Is Barack Obama? |date=August 24, 2008 |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=January 22, 2008}}</ref> {{As of|2009|03}}, the site had approximately 6.2 million visitors per month.<ref>{{cite web |last=Hochman |first=David |url=http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20090318123647/http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html |archive-date=March 18, 2009 |date=March 2009 |publisher=Reader's Digest |title=Rumor Detectives: True Story or Online Hoax? |accessdate=March 29, 2016}}</ref>

The Mikkelsons have stressed the ''reference'' portion of the name ''Urban Legends Reference Pages'', indicating that their intention is not merely to dismiss or confirm misconceptions and rumors but to provide evidence for such debunkings and confirmation as well.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/info/faq.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Frequently Asked Questions |publisher=Snopes |quote=How do I know the information you've presented is accurate? |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref> Where appropriate, pages are generally marked "undetermined" or "unverifiable" if the Mikkelsons feel there is not enough evidence to either support or disprove a given claim.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/roundrock.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Round Rock Gangs |date=July 21, 2011 |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=May 3, 2009}}</ref> The Mikkelsons have said many of the urban legends are mistakenly attributed because of common problems associated with e-mail signatures.{{cn|date=September 2016}}
==Lost Legends==
In an attempt to demonstrate the perils of over-reliance on the internet as authority, the Mikkelsons assembled a series of fabricated urban folklore tales that they term "The Repository of Lost Legends".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/lost/lost.htm |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Lost Legends |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref> The name was chosen for its acronym, T.R.O.L.L., a reference to the early 1990s definition of the word ''[[Internet troll|troll]]'', meaning an Internet prank, of which David Mikkelson was a prominent practitioner.<ref name=Porter/>

One fictional legend alleged that the children's [[nursery rhyme]] "[[Sing a Song of Sixpence]]" was really a coded reference used by pirates to recruit members. This parodied a real false legend surrounding the supposed connection of "[[Ring a Ring o' Roses]]" to the [[bubonic plague]]. Although the creators were sure that no one could believe a tale so ridiculous—and had added a link at the bottom of the page to another page explaining the hoax,<ref>{{cite web |first=David |last=Mikkelson |url=http://www.snopes.com/lost/false.htm |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: False Authority |publisher=Snopes.com |date=May 16, 2008 |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref> and a message with the ratings reading "Note: Any relationship between these ratings and reality is purely coincidental"—eventually the legend was featured as true in an urban legends board game and television show.<ref name="TVshow">{{cite web |first=David |last=Mikkelson |url=http://www.snopes.com/humor/mediagoofs/sixpence.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Mostly True Stories |publisher=Snopes.com |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref> The television show, ''[[Mostly True Stories: Urban Legends Revealed]]'', was shown to have been using information from Snopes when one of Snopes' invented "lost legends" appeared on the program as true; the repository thus served as an inadvertent [[copyright trap]].<ref name="Porter"/>

==Accuracy==

[[Jan Harold Brunvand]], a [[folklorist]] who has written a number of books on urban legends and modern folklore, considered the site so comprehensive in 2004 as to obviate launching one of his own.<ref name="Seipp"/>

David Mikkelson, the creator of the site, has said that the site receives more complaints of liberal bias than conservative bias,<ref name="FactCheck">{{cite web |url=http://www.factcheck.org/2009/04/snopescom/ |title=Ask FactCheck: Snopes.com |publisher=[[FactCheck.org]] |date=April 10, 2009 |accessdate=November 4, 2011}}</ref> but insists that the same debunking standards are applied to all political urban legends. In 2012, anoter liberal advoacy blog [[FactCheck.org]] reviewed a sample of Snopes' responses to political rumors regarding [[George W. Bush]], [[Sarah Palin]], and [[Barack Obama]], and found them to be free from bias in all cases. FactCheck noted that Barbara Mikkelson was a Canadian citizen (and thus unable to vote in US elections) and David Mikkelson was an independent who was once registered as a Republican. "You'd be hard-pressed to find two more apolitical people," David Mikkelson told them.<ref name="FactCheck"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.networkworld.com/article/2235277/data-center/fact-checking-the-fact-checkers--snopes-com-gets-an--a-.html |title=Fact-checking the fact-checkers: Snopes.com gets an 'A' |publisher=[[Network World]] |date=April 13, 2009}}</ref> In 2012, ''[[The Florida Times-Union]]'' reported that [[About.com]]'s urban legends researcher found a "consistent effort to provide even-handed analyses" and that Snopes' cited sources and numerous reputable analyses of its content confirm its accuracy.<ref>{{cite news |first=Carole |last=Fader |title=Fact Check: So who's checking the fact-finders? We are |url=http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2012-09-28/story/fact-check-so-whos-checking-fact-finders-we-are |work=[[The Florida Times-Union]] |date=September 28, 2012 |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref>

==Traffic and users==
In mid-2016, Snopes.com's [[Alexa Internet|Alexa rating]] was 1,590. Of the users, 80 percent originate from within the [[United States]].<ref name="alexa"/> In 2010, the site attracted 7 to 8 million unique visitors in one month.<ref name="Stelter_Brian">{{cite news |last=Stelter |first=Brian |title=Debunkers of Fictions Sift the Net |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/technology/05snopes.html |accessdate=March 19, 2013 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=April 4, 2010}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Internet}}
* [[TruthOrFiction.com]]
* [[FactCheck.org]]
* ''[[The Straight Dope]]''
* ''[[The Skeptic's Dictionary]]''
* ''[[MythBusters]]''
* [[List of common misconceptions]]

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{Official website}}

{{Urban Legends}}

[[Category:Internet properties established in 1995]]
[[Category:Educational websites]]
[[Category:Webby Award winners]]
[[Category:Skepticism]]
[[Category:1995 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Fact-checking websites]]

Snopes

2016-11-24T06:51:42Z

24.107.5.117:

{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2016}}
{{redirect|Snopes|the novels by William Faulkner|Snopes trilogy}}
{{Infobox Website
| name = Urban Legends Reference Pages (snopes.com)
| logo = Snopes.svg
| logo_size = 252px
| logo_alt = Snopes logo
| url = {{URL|www.snopes.com/}}
| type = Reference pages
| commercial = Yes
| registration = Required only on forums
| owner = Barbara and David P. Mikkelson<ref name="FactCheck"/>
| author = Barbara and David P. Mikkelson
| launch date = 1995
| current status = Active
| alexa = {{DecreasePositive}} 1,515 ({{as of|2016|9|6|alt=September 2016}})<ref name="alexa">{{cite web|url=http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/snopes.com|title= Snopes.com Site Info|publisher=[[Alexa Internet]]|accessdate= April 1, 2014}}</ref>

}}
'''Snopes.com''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|n|oʊ|p|s}}, also known as the '''Urban Legends Reference Pages''', is a liberal advocacy blog that also covers [[urban legend]]s, Internet rumors, [[Email forward|e-mail forwards]], and other stories of unknown or questionable origin.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4819108 |title=Snopes.com: Debunking Myths in Cyberspace] |publisher=[[NPR]] |date=August 27, 2005 |accessdate=August 27, 2005}}</ref> It describes itself as a resource for validating and debunking such stories in American popular culture,<ref>{{cite book |last=Henry |first=Neil |title=American Carnival: Journalism Under Siege in an Age of New Media |publisher=University of California Press |year=2007 |p=285}}</ref> receiving 300,000 visits a day.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/15/technology/personaltech/15pogue-email.html |last=Pogue |first=David |work=[[The New York Times]] |title=At Snopes.com, Rumors Are Held Up to the Light |date=July 15, 2010 |accessdate=July 16, 2010}}</ref>

Snopes.com was created by Barbara and David Mikkelson, a [[California]] couple who met in the alt.folklore.urban [[newsgroup]].<ref name="nyt100405">{{cite news |author=[[Brian Stelter]]|work=The New York Times|title=Debunkers of Fictions Sift the Net |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/technology/05snopes.html |date=April 4, 2010 |accessdate=April 5, 2010}}</ref> The site is organized by topic and includes a message board where stories and pictures of questionable veracity may be posted. The Mikkelsons founded the [[San Fernando Valley]] Folklore Society and were credited as the owners of that site until 2005.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=55;t=000490 |publisher=snopes.com| title=Messageboard post}}</ref>

==History==
David Mikkelson used the username "snopes" (the name of a family of often unpleasant people in the works of [[William Faulkner]])<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/info/faq.asp#snopes |title=Frequently Asked Questions |quote=What are 'snopes'? |publisher=Snopes.com |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref><ref name="Chron">{{cite news |first=Paul |last=Bond |work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]] |title=Web site separates fact from urban legend |url=http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Web-site-separates-fact-from-urban-legend-2800717.php |date=September 7, 2002 |accessdate=July 17, 2012}}</ref> in the [[Usenet]] newsgroup alt.folklore.urban.<ref name="Porter">{{cite book |last=Porter |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KQLaAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA48&lpg=PA48 |title=Internet Culture |chapter=Usenet Communities and the Cultural Politics of Information |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2013 |page=48 |isbn=978-1-135-20904-9 |accessdate=September 13, 2016 |quote=The two most notorious trollers in AFU, [[Ted Frank]] and snopes, are also two of the most consistent posters of serious research.}}</ref> The Mikkelsons created the Snopes site in 1995,<ref name="Seipp"/> and later worked on the site full-time.<ref name="nyt100405"/><ref name=Chron/><ref name="Seipp">{{cite news |first=Cathy |last=Seipp |authorlink=Catherine Seipp |work=[[National Review]] |title=Where Urban Legends Fall |url=http://www.nationalreview.com/seipp/seipp200407210830.asp |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040812075515/http://www.nationalreview.com/seipp/seipp200407210830.asp |archivedate=July 23, 2004 |accessdate=February 7, 2014 |date=July 21, 2004}}</ref>

A television pilot based on the site, called ''Snopes: Urban Legends'', was completed with American actor [[Jim Davidson (actor)|Jim Davidson]] as host, but major networks passed on the project.<ref name="Chron"/>

==Main site==
Snopes aims to debunk or confirm widely spread urban legends. The site has been referenced by news media and other sites, including [[CNN]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Nissen |first=Beth |url=http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/10/03/rec.false.rumors/index.html |title=Hear the rumor? Nostradamus and other tall tales |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=October 3, 2001 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> [[Fox News Channel]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/2006/10/31/teens-abusing-energy-boosting-drinks-doctors-fear.html |title=Teens Abusing Energy-Boosting Drinks, Doctors Fear |publisher=[[Fox News Channel]] |date=October 31, 2006 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> [[MSNBC]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/17798063/ |title=Urban Legends Banned-April Fools'! |publisher=[[MSNBC]] |date=April 1, 2007 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> and Australia's [[ABC Television|ABC]] on its ''[[Media Watch (TV program)|Media Watch]]'' program. Snopes' popular standing is such that some chain e-mail hoaxes claim to have been "checked out on 'Snopes.com'{{-"}} in an attempt to discourage readers from seeking verification.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/muslim.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Who Is Barack Obama? |date=August 24, 2008 |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=January 22, 2008}}</ref> {{As of|2009|03}}, the site had approximately 6.2 million visitors per month.<ref>{{cite web |last=Hochman |first=David |url=http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20090318123647/http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html |archive-date=March 18, 2009 |date=March 2009 |publisher=Reader's Digest |title=Rumor Detectives: True Story or Online Hoax? |accessdate=March 29, 2016}}</ref>

The Mikkelsons have stressed the ''reference'' portion of the name ''Urban Legends Reference Pages'', indicating that their intention is not merely to dismiss or confirm misconceptions and rumors but to provide evidence for such debunkings and confirmation as well.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/info/faq.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Frequently Asked Questions |publisher=Snopes |quote=How do I know the information you've presented is accurate? |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref> Where appropriate, pages are generally marked "undetermined" or "unverifiable" if the Mikkelsons feel there is not enough evidence to either support or disprove a given claim.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/roundrock.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Round Rock Gangs |date=July 21, 2011 |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=May 3, 2009}}</ref> The Mikkelsons have said many of the urban legends are mistakenly attributed because of common problems associated with e-mail signatures.{{cn|date=September 2016}}
==Lost Legends==
In an attempt to demonstrate the perils of over-reliance on the internet as authority, the Mikkelsons assembled a series of fabricated urban folklore tales that they term "The Repository of Lost Legends".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/lost/lost.htm |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Lost Legends |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref> The name was chosen for its acronym, T.R.O.L.L., a reference to the early 1990s definition of the word ''[[Internet troll|troll]]'', meaning an Internet prank, of which David Mikkelson was a prominent practitioner.<ref name=Porter/>

One fictional legend alleged that the children's [[nursery rhyme]] "[[Sing a Song of Sixpence]]" was really a coded reference used by pirates to recruit members. This parodied a real false legend surrounding the supposed connection of "[[Ring a Ring o' Roses]]" to the [[bubonic plague]]. Although the creators were sure that no one could believe a tale so ridiculous—and had added a link at the bottom of the page to another page explaining the hoax,<ref>{{cite web |first=David |last=Mikkelson |url=http://www.snopes.com/lost/false.htm |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: False Authority |publisher=Snopes.com |date=May 16, 2008 |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref> and a message with the ratings reading "Note: Any relationship between these ratings and reality is purely coincidental"—eventually the legend was featured as true in an urban legends board game and television show.<ref name="TVshow">{{cite web |first=David |last=Mikkelson |url=http://www.snopes.com/humor/mediagoofs/sixpence.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Mostly True Stories |publisher=Snopes.com |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref> The television show, ''[[Mostly True Stories: Urban Legends Revealed]]'', was shown to have been using information from Snopes when one of Snopes' invented "lost legends" appeared on the program as true; the repository thus served as an inadvertent [[copyright trap]].<ref name="Porter"/>

==Accuracy==

[[Jan Harold Brunvand]], a [[folklorist]] who has written a number of books on urban legends and modern folklore, considered the site so comprehensive in 2004 as to obviate launching one of his own.<ref name="Seipp"/>

David Mikkelson, the creator of the site, has said that the site receives more complaints of liberal bias than conservative bias,<ref name="FactCheck">{{cite web |url=http://www.factcheck.org/2009/04/snopescom/ |title=Ask FactCheck: Snopes.com |publisher=[[FactCheck.org]] |date=April 10, 2009 |accessdate=November 4, 2011}}</ref> but insists that the same debunking standards are applied to all political urban legends. In 2012, [[FactCheck.org]] reviewed a sample of Snopes' responses to political rumors regarding [[George W. Bush]], [[Sarah Palin]], and [[Barack Obama]], and found them to be free from bias in all cases. FactCheck noted that Barbara Mikkelson was a Canadian citizen (and thus unable to vote in US elections) and David Mikkelson was an independent who was once registered as a Republican. "You'd be hard-pressed to find two more apolitical people," David Mikkelson told them.<ref name="FactCheck"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.networkworld.com/article/2235277/data-center/fact-checking-the-fact-checkers--snopes-com-gets-an--a-.html |title=Fact-checking the fact-checkers: Snopes.com gets an 'A' |publisher=[[Network World]] |date=April 13, 2009}}</ref> In 2012, ''[[The Florida Times-Union]]'' reported that [[About.com]]'s urban legends researcher found a "consistent effort to provide even-handed analyses" and that Snopes' cited sources and numerous reputable analyses of its content confirm its accuracy.<ref>{{cite news |first=Carole |last=Fader |title=Fact Check: So who's checking the fact-finders? We are |url=http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2012-09-28/story/fact-check-so-whos-checking-fact-finders-we-are |work=[[The Florida Times-Union]] |date=September 28, 2012 |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref>

==Traffic and users==
In mid-2016, Snopes.com's [[Alexa Internet|Alexa rating]] was 1,590. Of the users, 80 percent originate from within the [[United States]].<ref name="alexa"/> In 2010, the site attracted 7 to 8 million unique visitors in one month.<ref name="Stelter_Brian">{{cite news |last=Stelter |first=Brian |title=Debunkers of Fictions Sift the Net |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/technology/05snopes.html |accessdate=March 19, 2013 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=April 4, 2010}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Internet}}
* [[TruthOrFiction.com]]
* [[FactCheck.org]]
* ''[[The Straight Dope]]''
* ''[[The Skeptic's Dictionary]]''
* ''[[MythBusters]]''
* [[List of common misconceptions]]

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{Official website}}

{{Urban Legends}}

[[Category:Internet properties established in 1995]]
[[Category:Educational websites]]
[[Category:Webby Award winners]]
[[Category:Skepticism]]
[[Category:1995 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Fact-checking websites]]

Snopes

2016-11-24T06:50:36Z

24.107.5.117:

{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2016}}
{{redirect|Snopes|the novels by William Faulkner|Snopes trilogy}}
{{Infobox Website
| name = Urban Legends Reference Pages (snopes.com)
| logo = Snopes.svg
| logo_size = 252px
| logo_alt = Snopes logo
| url = {{URL|www.snopes.com/}}
| type = Reference pages
| commercial = Yes
| registration = Required only on forums
| owner = Barbara and David P. Mikkelson<ref name="FactCheck"/>
| author = Barbara and David P. Mikkelson
| launch date = 1995
| current status = Active
| alexa = {{DecreasePositive}} 1,515 ({{as of|2016|9|6|alt=September 2016}})<ref name="alexa">{{cite web|url=http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/snopes.com|title= Snopes.com Site Info|publisher=[[Alexa Internet]]|accessdate= April 1, 2014}}</ref>

}}
'''Snopes.com''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|n|oʊ|p|s}}, also known as the '''Urban Legends Reference Pages''', is a liberal advocacy blog that also covers [[urban legend]]s, Internet rumors, [[Email forward|e-mail forwards]], and other stories of unknown or questionable origin.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4819108 |title=Snopes.com: Debunking Myths in Cyberspace] |publisher=[[NPR]] |date=August 27, 2005 |accessdate=August 27, 2005}}</ref> It is a well-known resource for validating and debunking such stories in American popular culture,<ref>{{cite book |last=Henry |first=Neil |title=American Carnival: Journalism Under Siege in an Age of New Media |publisher=University of California Press |year=2007 |p=285}}</ref> receiving 300,000 visits a day.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/15/technology/personaltech/15pogue-email.html |last=Pogue |first=David |work=[[The New York Times]] |title=At Snopes.com, Rumors Are Held Up to the Light |date=July 15, 2010 |accessdate=July 16, 2010}}</ref>

Snopes.com was created by Barbara and David Mikkelson, a [[California]] couple who met in the alt.folklore.urban [[newsgroup]].<ref name="nyt100405">{{cite news |author=[[Brian Stelter]]|work=The New York Times|title=Debunkers of Fictions Sift the Net |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/technology/05snopes.html |date=April 4, 2010 |accessdate=April 5, 2010}}</ref> The site is organized by topic and includes a message board where stories and pictures of questionable veracity may be posted. The Mikkelsons founded the [[San Fernando Valley]] Folklore Society and were credited as the owners of that site until 2005.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=55;t=000490 |publisher=snopes.com| title=Messageboard post}}</ref>

==History==
David Mikkelson used the username "snopes" (the name of a family of often unpleasant people in the works of [[William Faulkner]])<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/info/faq.asp#snopes |title=Frequently Asked Questions |quote=What are 'snopes'? |publisher=Snopes.com |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref><ref name="Chron">{{cite news |first=Paul |last=Bond |work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]] |title=Web site separates fact from urban legend |url=http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Web-site-separates-fact-from-urban-legend-2800717.php |date=September 7, 2002 |accessdate=July 17, 2012}}</ref> in the [[Usenet]] newsgroup alt.folklore.urban.<ref name="Porter">{{cite book |last=Porter |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KQLaAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA48&lpg=PA48 |title=Internet Culture |chapter=Usenet Communities and the Cultural Politics of Information |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2013 |page=48 |isbn=978-1-135-20904-9 |accessdate=September 13, 2016 |quote=The two most notorious trollers in AFU, [[Ted Frank]] and snopes, are also two of the most consistent posters of serious research.}}</ref> The Mikkelsons created the Snopes site in 1995,<ref name="Seipp"/> and later worked on the site full-time.<ref name="nyt100405"/><ref name=Chron/><ref name="Seipp">{{cite news |first=Cathy |last=Seipp |authorlink=Catherine Seipp |work=[[National Review]] |title=Where Urban Legends Fall |url=http://www.nationalreview.com/seipp/seipp200407210830.asp |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040812075515/http://www.nationalreview.com/seipp/seipp200407210830.asp |archivedate=July 23, 2004 |accessdate=February 7, 2014 |date=July 21, 2004}}</ref>

A television pilot based on the site, called ''Snopes: Urban Legends'', was completed with American actor [[Jim Davidson (actor)|Jim Davidson]] as host, but major networks passed on the project.<ref name="Chron"/>

==Main site==
Snopes aims to debunk or confirm widely spread urban legends. The site has been referenced by news media and other sites, including [[CNN]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Nissen |first=Beth |url=http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/10/03/rec.false.rumors/index.html |title=Hear the rumor? Nostradamus and other tall tales |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=October 3, 2001 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> [[Fox News Channel]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/2006/10/31/teens-abusing-energy-boosting-drinks-doctors-fear.html |title=Teens Abusing Energy-Boosting Drinks, Doctors Fear |publisher=[[Fox News Channel]] |date=October 31, 2006 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> [[MSNBC]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/17798063/ |title=Urban Legends Banned-April Fools'! |publisher=[[MSNBC]] |date=April 1, 2007 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> and Australia's [[ABC Television|ABC]] on its ''[[Media Watch (TV program)|Media Watch]]'' program. Snopes' popular standing is such that some chain e-mail hoaxes claim to have been "checked out on 'Snopes.com'{{-"}} in an attempt to discourage readers from seeking verification.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/muslim.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Who Is Barack Obama? |date=August 24, 2008 |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=January 22, 2008}}</ref> {{As of|2009|03}}, the site had approximately 6.2 million visitors per month.<ref>{{cite web |last=Hochman |first=David |url=http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20090318123647/http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html |archive-date=March 18, 2009 |date=March 2009 |publisher=Reader's Digest |title=Rumor Detectives: True Story or Online Hoax? |accessdate=March 29, 2016}}</ref>

The Mikkelsons have stressed the ''reference'' portion of the name ''Urban Legends Reference Pages'', indicating that their intention is not merely to dismiss or confirm misconceptions and rumors but to provide evidence for such debunkings and confirmation as well.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/info/faq.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Frequently Asked Questions |publisher=Snopes |quote=How do I know the information you've presented is accurate? |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref> Where appropriate, pages are generally marked "undetermined" or "unverifiable" if the Mikkelsons feel there is not enough evidence to either support or disprove a given claim.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/roundrock.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Round Rock Gangs |date=July 21, 2011 |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=May 3, 2009}}</ref> The Mikkelsons have said many of the urban legends are mistakenly attributed because of common problems associated with e-mail signatures.{{cn|date=September 2016}}
==Lost Legends==
In an attempt to demonstrate the perils of over-reliance on the internet as authority, the Mikkelsons assembled a series of fabricated urban folklore tales that they term "The Repository of Lost Legends".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/lost/lost.htm |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Lost Legends |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref> The name was chosen for its acronym, T.R.O.L.L., a reference to the early 1990s definition of the word ''[[Internet troll|troll]]'', meaning an Internet prank, of which David Mikkelson was a prominent practitioner.<ref name=Porter/>

One fictional legend alleged that the children's [[nursery rhyme]] "[[Sing a Song of Sixpence]]" was really a coded reference used by pirates to recruit members. This parodied a real false legend surrounding the supposed connection of "[[Ring a Ring o' Roses]]" to the [[bubonic plague]]. Although the creators were sure that no one could believe a tale so ridiculous—and had added a link at the bottom of the page to another page explaining the hoax,<ref>{{cite web |first=David |last=Mikkelson |url=http://www.snopes.com/lost/false.htm |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: False Authority |publisher=Snopes.com |date=May 16, 2008 |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref> and a message with the ratings reading "Note: Any relationship between these ratings and reality is purely coincidental"—eventually the legend was featured as true in an urban legends board game and television show.<ref name="TVshow">{{cite web |first=David |last=Mikkelson |url=http://www.snopes.com/humor/mediagoofs/sixpence.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Mostly True Stories |publisher=Snopes.com |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref> The television show, ''[[Mostly True Stories: Urban Legends Revealed]]'', was shown to have been using information from Snopes when one of Snopes' invented "lost legends" appeared on the program as true; the repository thus served as an inadvertent [[copyright trap]].<ref name="Porter"/>

==Accuracy==

[[Jan Harold Brunvand]], a [[folklorist]] who has written a number of books on urban legends and modern folklore, considered the site so comprehensive in 2004 as to obviate launching one of his own.<ref name="Seipp"/>

David Mikkelson, the creator of the site, has said that the site receives more complaints of liberal bias than conservative bias,<ref name="FactCheck">{{cite web |url=http://www.factcheck.org/2009/04/snopescom/ |title=Ask FactCheck: Snopes.com |publisher=[[FactCheck.org]] |date=April 10, 2009 |accessdate=November 4, 2011}}</ref> but insists that the same debunking standards are applied to all political urban legends. In 2012, [[FactCheck.org]] reviewed a sample of Snopes' responses to political rumors regarding [[George W. Bush]], [[Sarah Palin]], and [[Barack Obama]], and found them to be free from bias in all cases. FactCheck noted that Barbara Mikkelson was a Canadian citizen (and thus unable to vote in US elections) and David Mikkelson was an independent who was once registered as a Republican. "You'd be hard-pressed to find two more apolitical people," David Mikkelson told them.<ref name="FactCheck"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.networkworld.com/article/2235277/data-center/fact-checking-the-fact-checkers--snopes-com-gets-an--a-.html |title=Fact-checking the fact-checkers: Snopes.com gets an 'A' |publisher=[[Network World]] |date=April 13, 2009}}</ref> In 2012, ''[[The Florida Times-Union]]'' reported that [[About.com]]'s urban legends researcher found a "consistent effort to provide even-handed analyses" and that Snopes' cited sources and numerous reputable analyses of its content confirm its accuracy.<ref>{{cite news |first=Carole |last=Fader |title=Fact Check: So who's checking the fact-finders? We are |url=http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2012-09-28/story/fact-check-so-whos-checking-fact-finders-we-are |work=[[The Florida Times-Union]] |date=September 28, 2012 |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref>

==Traffic and users==
In mid-2016, Snopes.com's [[Alexa Internet|Alexa rating]] was 1,590. Of the users, 80 percent originate from within the [[United States]].<ref name="alexa"/> In 2010, the site attracted 7 to 8 million unique visitors in one month.<ref name="Stelter_Brian">{{cite news |last=Stelter |first=Brian |title=Debunkers of Fictions Sift the Net |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/technology/05snopes.html |accessdate=March 19, 2013 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=April 4, 2010}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Internet}}
* [[TruthOrFiction.com]]
* [[FactCheck.org]]
* ''[[The Straight Dope]]''
* ''[[The Skeptic's Dictionary]]''
* ''[[MythBusters]]''
* [[List of common misconceptions]]

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{Official website}}

{{Urban Legends}}

[[Category:Internet properties established in 1995]]
[[Category:Educational websites]]
[[Category:Webby Award winners]]
[[Category:Skepticism]]
[[Category:1995 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Fact-checking websites]]

Snopes

2016-11-24T06:50:15Z

24.107.5.117:

{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2016}}
{{redirect|Snopes|the novels by William Faulkner|Snopes trilogy}}
{{Infobox Website
| name = Urban Legends Reference Pages (snopes.com)
| logo = Snopes.svg
| logo_size = 252px
| logo_alt = Snopes logo
| url = {{URL|www.snopes.com/}}
| type = Reference pages
| commercial = Yes
| registration = Required only on forums
| owner = Barbara and David P. Mikkelson<ref name="FactCheck"/>
| author = Barbara and David P. Mikkelson
| launch date = 1995
| current status = Active
| alexa = {{DecreasePositive}} 1,515 ({{as of|2016|9|6|alt=September 2016}})<ref name="alexa">{{cite web|url=http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/snopes.com|title= Snopes.com Site Info|publisher=[[Alexa Internet]]|accessdate= April 1, 2014}}</ref>

}}
'''Snopes.com''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|n|oʊ|p|s}}, also known as the '''Urban Legends Reference Pages''', is a liberal advocacy blog that also covers[[urban legend]]s, Internet rumors, [[Email forward|e-mail forwards]], and other stories of unknown or questionable origin.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4819108 |title=Snopes.com: Debunking Myths in Cyberspace] |publisher=[[NPR]] |date=August 27, 2005 |accessdate=August 27, 2005}}</ref> It is a well-known resource for validating and debunking such stories in American popular culture,<ref>{{cite book |last=Henry |first=Neil |title=American Carnival: Journalism Under Siege in an Age of New Media |publisher=University of California Press |year=2007 |p=285}}</ref> receiving 300,000 visits a day.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/15/technology/personaltech/15pogue-email.html |last=Pogue |first=David |work=[[The New York Times]] |title=At Snopes.com, Rumors Are Held Up to the Light |date=July 15, 2010 |accessdate=July 16, 2010}}</ref>

Snopes.com was created by Barbara and David Mikkelson, a [[California]] couple who met in the alt.folklore.urban [[newsgroup]].<ref name="nyt100405">{{cite news |author=[[Brian Stelter]]|work=The New York Times|title=Debunkers of Fictions Sift the Net |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/technology/05snopes.html |date=April 4, 2010 |accessdate=April 5, 2010}}</ref> The site is organized by topic and includes a message board where stories and pictures of questionable veracity may be posted. The Mikkelsons founded the [[San Fernando Valley]] Folklore Society and were credited as the owners of that site until 2005.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=55;t=000490 |publisher=snopes.com| title=Messageboard post}}</ref>

==History==
David Mikkelson used the username "snopes" (the name of a family of often unpleasant people in the works of [[William Faulkner]])<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/info/faq.asp#snopes |title=Frequently Asked Questions |quote=What are 'snopes'? |publisher=Snopes.com |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref><ref name="Chron">{{cite news |first=Paul |last=Bond |work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]] |title=Web site separates fact from urban legend |url=http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Web-site-separates-fact-from-urban-legend-2800717.php |date=September 7, 2002 |accessdate=July 17, 2012}}</ref> in the [[Usenet]] newsgroup alt.folklore.urban.<ref name="Porter">{{cite book |last=Porter |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KQLaAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA48&lpg=PA48 |title=Internet Culture |chapter=Usenet Communities and the Cultural Politics of Information |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2013 |page=48 |isbn=978-1-135-20904-9 |accessdate=September 13, 2016 |quote=The two most notorious trollers in AFU, [[Ted Frank]] and snopes, are also two of the most consistent posters of serious research.}}</ref> The Mikkelsons created the Snopes site in 1995,<ref name="Seipp"/> and later worked on the site full-time.<ref name="nyt100405"/><ref name=Chron/><ref name="Seipp">{{cite news |first=Cathy |last=Seipp |authorlink=Catherine Seipp |work=[[National Review]] |title=Where Urban Legends Fall |url=http://www.nationalreview.com/seipp/seipp200407210830.asp |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040812075515/http://www.nationalreview.com/seipp/seipp200407210830.asp |archivedate=July 23, 2004 |accessdate=February 7, 2014 |date=July 21, 2004}}</ref>

A television pilot based on the site, called ''Snopes: Urban Legends'', was completed with American actor [[Jim Davidson (actor)|Jim Davidson]] as host, but major networks passed on the project.<ref name="Chron"/>

==Main site==
Snopes aims to debunk or confirm widely spread urban legends. The site has been referenced by news media and other sites, including [[CNN]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Nissen |first=Beth |url=http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/10/03/rec.false.rumors/index.html |title=Hear the rumor? Nostradamus and other tall tales |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=October 3, 2001 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> [[Fox News Channel]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/2006/10/31/teens-abusing-energy-boosting-drinks-doctors-fear.html |title=Teens Abusing Energy-Boosting Drinks, Doctors Fear |publisher=[[Fox News Channel]] |date=October 31, 2006 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> [[MSNBC]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/17798063/ |title=Urban Legends Banned-April Fools'! |publisher=[[MSNBC]] |date=April 1, 2007 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> and Australia's [[ABC Television|ABC]] on its ''[[Media Watch (TV program)|Media Watch]]'' program. Snopes' popular standing is such that some chain e-mail hoaxes claim to have been "checked out on 'Snopes.com'{{-"}} in an attempt to discourage readers from seeking verification.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/muslim.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Who Is Barack Obama? |date=August 24, 2008 |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=January 22, 2008}}</ref> {{As of|2009|03}}, the site had approximately 6.2 million visitors per month.<ref>{{cite web |last=Hochman |first=David |url=http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20090318123647/http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html |archive-date=March 18, 2009 |date=March 2009 |publisher=Reader's Digest |title=Rumor Detectives: True Story or Online Hoax? |accessdate=March 29, 2016}}</ref>

The Mikkelsons have stressed the ''reference'' portion of the name ''Urban Legends Reference Pages'', indicating that their intention is not merely to dismiss or confirm misconceptions and rumors but to provide evidence for such debunkings and confirmation as well.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/info/faq.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Frequently Asked Questions |publisher=Snopes |quote=How do I know the information you've presented is accurate? |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref> Where appropriate, pages are generally marked "undetermined" or "unverifiable" if the Mikkelsons feel there is not enough evidence to either support or disprove a given claim.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/roundrock.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Round Rock Gangs |date=July 21, 2011 |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=May 3, 2009}}</ref> The Mikkelsons have said many of the urban legends are mistakenly attributed because of common problems associated with e-mail signatures.{{cn|date=September 2016}}
==Lost Legends==
In an attempt to demonstrate the perils of over-reliance on the internet as authority, the Mikkelsons assembled a series of fabricated urban folklore tales that they term "The Repository of Lost Legends".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/lost/lost.htm |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Lost Legends |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref> The name was chosen for its acronym, T.R.O.L.L., a reference to the early 1990s definition of the word ''[[Internet troll|troll]]'', meaning an Internet prank, of which David Mikkelson was a prominent practitioner.<ref name=Porter/>

One fictional legend alleged that the children's [[nursery rhyme]] "[[Sing a Song of Sixpence]]" was really a coded reference used by pirates to recruit members. This parodied a real false legend surrounding the supposed connection of "[[Ring a Ring o' Roses]]" to the [[bubonic plague]]. Although the creators were sure that no one could believe a tale so ridiculous—and had added a link at the bottom of the page to another page explaining the hoax,<ref>{{cite web |first=David |last=Mikkelson |url=http://www.snopes.com/lost/false.htm |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: False Authority |publisher=Snopes.com |date=May 16, 2008 |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref> and a message with the ratings reading "Note: Any relationship between these ratings and reality is purely coincidental"—eventually the legend was featured as true in an urban legends board game and television show.<ref name="TVshow">{{cite web |first=David |last=Mikkelson |url=http://www.snopes.com/humor/mediagoofs/sixpence.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Mostly True Stories |publisher=Snopes.com |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref> The television show, ''[[Mostly True Stories: Urban Legends Revealed]]'', was shown to have been using information from Snopes when one of Snopes' invented "lost legends" appeared on the program as true; the repository thus served as an inadvertent [[copyright trap]].<ref name="Porter"/>

==Accuracy==

[[Jan Harold Brunvand]], a [[folklorist]] who has written a number of books on urban legends and modern folklore, considered the site so comprehensive in 2004 as to obviate launching one of his own.<ref name="Seipp"/>

David Mikkelson, the creator of the site, has said that the site receives more complaints of liberal bias than conservative bias,<ref name="FactCheck">{{cite web |url=http://www.factcheck.org/2009/04/snopescom/ |title=Ask FactCheck: Snopes.com |publisher=[[FactCheck.org]] |date=April 10, 2009 |accessdate=November 4, 2011}}</ref> but insists that the same debunking standards are applied to all political urban legends. In 2012, [[FactCheck.org]] reviewed a sample of Snopes' responses to political rumors regarding [[George W. Bush]], [[Sarah Palin]], and [[Barack Obama]], and found them to be free from bias in all cases. FactCheck noted that Barbara Mikkelson was a Canadian citizen (and thus unable to vote in US elections) and David Mikkelson was an independent who was once registered as a Republican. "You'd be hard-pressed to find two more apolitical people," David Mikkelson told them.<ref name="FactCheck"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.networkworld.com/article/2235277/data-center/fact-checking-the-fact-checkers--snopes-com-gets-an--a-.html |title=Fact-checking the fact-checkers: Snopes.com gets an 'A' |publisher=[[Network World]] |date=April 13, 2009}}</ref> In 2012, ''[[The Florida Times-Union]]'' reported that [[About.com]]'s urban legends researcher found a "consistent effort to provide even-handed analyses" and that Snopes' cited sources and numerous reputable analyses of its content confirm its accuracy.<ref>{{cite news |first=Carole |last=Fader |title=Fact Check: So who's checking the fact-finders? We are |url=http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2012-09-28/story/fact-check-so-whos-checking-fact-finders-we-are |work=[[The Florida Times-Union]] |date=September 28, 2012 |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref>

==Traffic and users==
In mid-2016, Snopes.com's [[Alexa Internet|Alexa rating]] was 1,590. Of the users, 80 percent originate from within the [[United States]].<ref name="alexa"/> In 2010, the site attracted 7 to 8 million unique visitors in one month.<ref name="Stelter_Brian">{{cite news |last=Stelter |first=Brian |title=Debunkers of Fictions Sift the Net |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/technology/05snopes.html |accessdate=March 19, 2013 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=April 4, 2010}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Internet}}
* [[TruthOrFiction.com]]
* [[FactCheck.org]]
* ''[[The Straight Dope]]''
* ''[[The Skeptic's Dictionary]]''
* ''[[MythBusters]]''
* [[List of common misconceptions]]

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{Official website}}

{{Urban Legends}}

[[Category:Internet properties established in 1995]]
[[Category:Educational websites]]
[[Category:Webby Award winners]]
[[Category:Skepticism]]
[[Category:1995 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Fact-checking websites]]

Snopes

2016-11-24T06:49:48Z

24.107.5.117:

{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2016}}
{{redirect|Snopes|the novels by William Faulkner|Snopes trilogy}}
{{Infobox Website
| name = Urban Legends Reference Pages (snopes.com)
| logo = Snopes.svg
| logo_size = 252px
| logo_alt = Snopes logo
| url = {{URL|www.snopes.com/}}
| type = Reference pages
| commercial = Yes
| registration = Required only on forums
| owner = Barbara and David P. Mikkelson<ref name="FactCheck"/>
| author = Barbara and David P. Mikkelson
| launch date = 1995
| current status = Active
| alexa = {{DecreasePositive}} 1,515 ({{as of|2016|9|6|alt=September 2016}})<ref name="alexa">{{cite web|url=http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/snopes.com|title= Snopes.com Site Info|publisher=[[Alexa Internet]]|accessdate= April 1, 2014}}</ref>

}}
'''Snopes.com''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|n|oʊ|p|s}}, also known as the '''Urban Legends Reference Pages''', is a [[website]] liberal advocacy website that also covers[[urban legend]]s, Internet rumors, [[Email forward|e-mail forwards]], and other stories of unknown or questionable origin.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4819108 |title=Snopes.com: Debunking Myths in Cyberspace] |publisher=[[NPR]] |date=August 27, 2005 |accessdate=August 27, 2005}}</ref> It is a well-known resource for validating and debunking such stories in American popular culture,<ref>{{cite book |last=Henry |first=Neil |title=American Carnival: Journalism Under Siege in an Age of New Media |publisher=University of California Press |year=2007 |p=285}}</ref> receiving 300,000 visits a day.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/15/technology/personaltech/15pogue-email.html |last=Pogue |first=David |work=[[The New York Times]] |title=At Snopes.com, Rumors Are Held Up to the Light |date=July 15, 2010 |accessdate=July 16, 2010}}</ref>

Snopes.com was created by Barbara and David Mikkelson, a [[California]] couple who met in the alt.folklore.urban [[newsgroup]].<ref name="nyt100405">{{cite news |author=[[Brian Stelter]]|work=The New York Times|title=Debunkers of Fictions Sift the Net |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/technology/05snopes.html |date=April 4, 2010 |accessdate=April 5, 2010}}</ref> The site is organized by topic and includes a message board where stories and pictures of questionable veracity may be posted. The Mikkelsons founded the [[San Fernando Valley]] Folklore Society and were credited as the owners of that site until 2005.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=55;t=000490 |publisher=snopes.com| title=Messageboard post}}</ref>

==History==
David Mikkelson used the username "snopes" (the name of a family of often unpleasant people in the works of [[William Faulkner]])<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/info/faq.asp#snopes |title=Frequently Asked Questions |quote=What are 'snopes'? |publisher=Snopes.com |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref><ref name="Chron">{{cite news |first=Paul |last=Bond |work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]] |title=Web site separates fact from urban legend |url=http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Web-site-separates-fact-from-urban-legend-2800717.php |date=September 7, 2002 |accessdate=July 17, 2012}}</ref> in the [[Usenet]] newsgroup alt.folklore.urban.<ref name="Porter">{{cite book |last=Porter |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KQLaAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA48&lpg=PA48 |title=Internet Culture |chapter=Usenet Communities and the Cultural Politics of Information |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2013 |page=48 |isbn=978-1-135-20904-9 |accessdate=September 13, 2016 |quote=The two most notorious trollers in AFU, [[Ted Frank]] and snopes, are also two of the most consistent posters of serious research.}}</ref> The Mikkelsons created the Snopes site in 1995,<ref name="Seipp"/> and later worked on the site full-time.<ref name="nyt100405"/><ref name=Chron/><ref name="Seipp">{{cite news |first=Cathy |last=Seipp |authorlink=Catherine Seipp |work=[[National Review]] |title=Where Urban Legends Fall |url=http://www.nationalreview.com/seipp/seipp200407210830.asp |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040812075515/http://www.nationalreview.com/seipp/seipp200407210830.asp |archivedate=July 23, 2004 |accessdate=February 7, 2014 |date=July 21, 2004}}</ref>

A television pilot based on the site, called ''Snopes: Urban Legends'', was completed with American actor [[Jim Davidson (actor)|Jim Davidson]] as host, but major networks passed on the project.<ref name="Chron"/>

==Main site==
Snopes aims to debunk or confirm widely spread urban legends. The site has been referenced by news media and other sites, including [[CNN]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Nissen |first=Beth |url=http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/10/03/rec.false.rumors/index.html |title=Hear the rumor? Nostradamus and other tall tales |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=October 3, 2001 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> [[Fox News Channel]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/2006/10/31/teens-abusing-energy-boosting-drinks-doctors-fear.html |title=Teens Abusing Energy-Boosting Drinks, Doctors Fear |publisher=[[Fox News Channel]] |date=October 31, 2006 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> [[MSNBC]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/17798063/ |title=Urban Legends Banned-April Fools'! |publisher=[[MSNBC]] |date=April 1, 2007 |accessdate=June 7, 2009}}</ref> and Australia's [[ABC Television|ABC]] on its ''[[Media Watch (TV program)|Media Watch]]'' program. Snopes' popular standing is such that some chain e-mail hoaxes claim to have been "checked out on 'Snopes.com'{{-"}} in an attempt to discourage readers from seeking verification.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/muslim.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Who Is Barack Obama? |date=August 24, 2008 |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=January 22, 2008}}</ref> {{As of|2009|03}}, the site had approximately 6.2 million visitors per month.<ref>{{cite web |last=Hochman |first=David |url=http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20090318123647/http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/rumor-detectives-true-story-or-online-hoax/article122216.html |archive-date=March 18, 2009 |date=March 2009 |publisher=Reader's Digest |title=Rumor Detectives: True Story or Online Hoax? |accessdate=March 29, 2016}}</ref>

The Mikkelsons have stressed the ''reference'' portion of the name ''Urban Legends Reference Pages'', indicating that their intention is not merely to dismiss or confirm misconceptions and rumors but to provide evidence for such debunkings and confirmation as well.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/info/faq.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Frequently Asked Questions |publisher=Snopes |quote=How do I know the information you've presented is accurate? |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref> Where appropriate, pages are generally marked "undetermined" or "unverifiable" if the Mikkelsons feel there is not enough evidence to either support or disprove a given claim.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/roundrock.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Round Rock Gangs |date=July 21, 2011 |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=May 3, 2009}}</ref> The Mikkelsons have said many of the urban legends are mistakenly attributed because of common problems associated with e-mail signatures.{{cn|date=September 2016}}
==Lost Legends==
In an attempt to demonstrate the perils of over-reliance on the internet as authority, the Mikkelsons assembled a series of fabricated urban folklore tales that they term "The Repository of Lost Legends".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snopes.com/lost/lost.htm |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Lost Legends |publisher=Snopes |accessdate=June 9, 2006}}</ref> The name was chosen for its acronym, T.R.O.L.L., a reference to the early 1990s definition of the word ''[[Internet troll|troll]]'', meaning an Internet prank, of which David Mikkelson was a prominent practitioner.<ref name=Porter/>

One fictional legend alleged that the children's [[nursery rhyme]] "[[Sing a Song of Sixpence]]" was really a coded reference used by pirates to recruit members. This parodied a real false legend surrounding the supposed connection of "[[Ring a Ring o' Roses]]" to the [[bubonic plague]]. Although the creators were sure that no one could believe a tale so ridiculous—and had added a link at the bottom of the page to another page explaining the hoax,<ref>{{cite web |first=David |last=Mikkelson |url=http://www.snopes.com/lost/false.htm |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: False Authority |publisher=Snopes.com |date=May 16, 2008 |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref> and a message with the ratings reading "Note: Any relationship between these ratings and reality is purely coincidental"—eventually the legend was featured as true in an urban legends board game and television show.<ref name="TVshow">{{cite web |first=David |last=Mikkelson |url=http://www.snopes.com/humor/mediagoofs/sixpence.asp |title=Urban Legends Reference Pages: Mostly True Stories |publisher=Snopes.com |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref> The television show, ''[[Mostly True Stories: Urban Legends Revealed]]'', was shown to have been using information from Snopes when one of Snopes' invented "lost legends" appeared on the program as true; the repository thus served as an inadvertent [[copyright trap]].<ref name="Porter"/>

==Accuracy==

[[Jan Harold Brunvand]], a [[folklorist]] who has written a number of books on urban legends and modern folklore, considered the site so comprehensive in 2004 as to obviate launching one of his own.<ref name="Seipp"/>

David Mikkelson, the creator of the site, has said that the site receives more complaints of liberal bias than conservative bias,<ref name="FactCheck">{{cite web |url=http://www.factcheck.org/2009/04/snopescom/ |title=Ask FactCheck: Snopes.com |publisher=[[FactCheck.org]] |date=April 10, 2009 |accessdate=November 4, 2011}}</ref> but insists that the same debunking standards are applied to all political urban legends. In 2012, [[FactCheck.org]] reviewed a sample of Snopes' responses to political rumors regarding [[George W. Bush]], [[Sarah Palin]], and [[Barack Obama]], and found them to be free from bias in all cases. FactCheck noted that Barbara Mikkelson was a Canadian citizen (and thus unable to vote in US elections) and David Mikkelson was an independent who was once registered as a Republican. "You'd be hard-pressed to find two more apolitical people," David Mikkelson told them.<ref name="FactCheck"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.networkworld.com/article/2235277/data-center/fact-checking-the-fact-checkers--snopes-com-gets-an--a-.html |title=Fact-checking the fact-checkers: Snopes.com gets an 'A' |publisher=[[Network World]] |date=April 13, 2009}}</ref> In 2012, ''[[The Florida Times-Union]]'' reported that [[About.com]]'s urban legends researcher found a "consistent effort to provide even-handed analyses" and that Snopes' cited sources and numerous reputable analyses of its content confirm its accuracy.<ref>{{cite news |first=Carole |last=Fader |title=Fact Check: So who's checking the fact-finders? We are |url=http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2012-09-28/story/fact-check-so-whos-checking-fact-finders-we-are |work=[[The Florida Times-Union]] |date=September 28, 2012 |accessdate=July 20, 2016}}</ref>

==Traffic and users==
In mid-2016, Snopes.com's [[Alexa Internet|Alexa rating]] was 1,590. Of the users, 80 percent originate from within the [[United States]].<ref name="alexa"/> In 2010, the site attracted 7 to 8 million unique visitors in one month.<ref name="Stelter_Brian">{{cite news |last=Stelter |first=Brian |title=Debunkers of Fictions Sift the Net |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/05/technology/05snopes.html |accessdate=March 19, 2013 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=April 4, 2010}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Internet}}
* [[TruthOrFiction.com]]
* [[FactCheck.org]]
* ''[[The Straight Dope]]''
* ''[[The Skeptic's Dictionary]]''
* ''[[MythBusters]]''
* [[List of common misconceptions]]

== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{Official website}}

{{Urban Legends}}

[[Category:Internet properties established in 1995]]
[[Category:Educational websites]]
[[Category:Webby Award winners]]
[[Category:Skepticism]]
[[Category:1995 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Fact-checking websites]]