Here are some key characteristics of a hoax:
* Intentionality: A hoax is always planned and carried out with the intent to deceive.
* Falsehood: The information presented in a hoax is fabricated or distorted to create a false impression.
* Misleading: The goal of a hoax is to mislead the audience into believing something that is not true.
* Potential Harm: While some hoaxes are harmless pranks, others can have serious consequences, such as spreading fear, causing financial damage, or undermining trust.
Examples of hoaxes:
* The War of the Worlds broadcast: Orson Welles's radio dramatization of H.G. Wells's novel caused widespread panic by presenting fictional alien invasions as real news.
* The Piltdown Man: A fabricated fossil presented as a missing link between apes and humans was a hoax that fooled scientists for decades.
* The "fake news" phenomenon: The spread of intentionally false or misleading information online, often with political motives, is a contemporary form of hoax.
It's important to note that accidental misinformation is not a hoax. A hoax is always intentional.