False report of death of Benedict XVI was journalist’s hoax
July 12, 2022
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CWN Editor's Note: A false report that Pope-emeritus Benedict XVI had died, which circulated quickly around the internet on July 12, was the work of an Italian journalist who is infamous for hoaxes.
The story appeared on a bogus Twitter account, falsely attributed to Bishop Georg Bätzing, the president of the German bishops’ conference. That account was closed—but not before revealing that the hoax had been the work of Tommasso De Benedetti.
Benedict XVI, who marked his 95th birthday in April, has been described by his longtime secretary, Archbishop Georg Gänswein, as extremely frail but still alert.
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