On Aug. 25 , 1835 , The New York Sun ran thefirst in a seriesof paper article describing scientific determination from themoon . Known as " The Great Moon Hoax , " the articles were opine to have been reprint from the Edinburgh Journal of Science and written by Dr. Andrew Grant , a colleague of the celebrated astronomer Sir John Herschel . The serial featured some of the most popular article the New York newspaper had ever publish at the time , and the great unwashed clamored to read about the breaking scientific news of the day .
The articles describe Herschel , who had traveled to Capetown , South Africa , in January 1834 to go under up an observatory with a powerful newtelescope . Grant’swritings suggestedthat while in South Africa , Herschel had found evidence of life on the lunar month , include unicorn , two - legged beavers andhumanoids that"average four metrical foot in height , were track , except on the face , with shortsighted and glossy copper - colored hair , and had annex composed of a thin tissue layer , without hair , lying snugly on their back . "
The articles also describe the moon ’s geography as having massive Crater , amethyst crystals , run rivers and lush vegetation .
The problem ? The articles were completely fake . Grant did n’t be , neither did the Edinburgh Journal of Science . It stopped publication years earlier . And the finding printed had no groundwork in scientific fact .
But the story of supposedlife on the mooncaptured the vision of the masses from one terminal of the U.S. to the other . Newspapers could n’t publish them fast enough . Artists coiffure out to recreate the images spoken of in the article .
mass believed the poppycock . And why would n’t they ? But readers were n’t supposed to because the real writer never intended them to . The true writer wrote the articles as sarcasm piece , similar to those you come up in today ’s pop caustic remark column and sites , likethe Borowitz ReportandThe Onion .
These article were probably write by Richard Adams Locke . Locke was a newsman at the time for The Sun who work meticulously to make people believe the moon stories , dropping items in the paper beforehand and establishing the unquestionable scientific report of those involved ( Sir John Herschel , for good example ) . Then , he impress the articles , allowing them to grow in their absurdity .
But when papers were being reprint all over the country and the world , Locke and The Sun finally had to occur clean and on Sept. 16 , 1835 , they last admitted it was all a hoax .
So while we are certainly living in the sidereal day of disinformation and " fake tidings , " maybe you could feel substantially have intercourse that readers have been tricked into believe words in mark for a longsighted time , even if the writers behind the discussion were simply trying to have fun .
