Cher fans were upset Monday after misinterpreting a Twitter hashtag that read #Nowthatcherisdead as reading "Now That Cher Is Dead" rather than how it is intended to be read, which is "Now Thatcher Is Dead" in reference to the British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who passed away on Monday at age 87.
The hashtag was started by a web site that was dedicated to the status of Margaret Thatcher's death, called "Is Thatcher Dead Yet?" As soon as the news of her death reached them, the site posted the hashtag, which answered the question asked by their title.
Many Twitter users expressed grief, others confusion. Comedian Ricky Gervais joined the conversation to explain the confusion, tweeting the correct way to interpret the hashtag.
Some Twitter users began making jokes about the confusion.
"Do you believe in life after life?" tweeted Daniel Reeders, who goes by the Twitter handle @onekind.
Others addressed more practical concerns. "Everyone thinking Cher is dead is a perfect example of why capital letters should be used in hashtags," tweeted @MauriceHughes96.
"I note with curiosity that the hashtag #nowthatcherisdead is trending from Melbourne to Dublin," tweeted @RichieBenaud. "I can't confirm anywhere that Cher is dead?"
A Middle East news website, NOW News, even reported the information as fact before later retracting the story.
"After publication of this eulogy, NOW was informed that the hashtag alluded to above has been used in reference to some British lady named Margaret Thatcher, and that the singer Cher is alive and well, cozy in her Malibu estate," Now News wrote. "NOW regrets the error."
Cher posted a photograph on her Twitter account of herself and son Chaz celebrating his birthday on Sunday.
Prior to the confusion resulting from the hashtag, Twitter has been the cause of many recent celebrity death hoaxes, making it always necessary to verify trending topics on Twitter through legitimate news sites.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
