'Tiger King' Star Falls for YouTube Hoax
by EG
A pair of British YouTubers figured out how to get reluctant Tiger King star Carole Baskin to agree to an interview: they lied to her. The YouTubers claimed they were working for Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon, and Baskin fell for it. The result was the first interview Baskin has given since the Netflix series became a social-media sensation. Read on for details.
Via People.
Carole Baskin has given her first interview since the premiere of the Netflix series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness.
On Sunday, British YouTubers Josh Pieters and Archie Manners released a YouTube video claiming they hoaxed Baskin into doing the interview by pretending to work for Jimmy Fallon and his late-night show, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
The pair lied to Baskin, telling her that their production company, Invisible Object, worked with Fallon to secure celebrity interviews for his show. Then, they told her she would be interviewed by Fallon via a Zoom conference call, but in reality, they used sound bites from old clips of the late-night show to conduct the interview.
Reps for Fallon did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
After rejecting their proposal twice, Baskin agreed to the interview on the grounds that she would not be asked about the Netflix docu-series, which she has repeatedly criticized for spreading misinformation.
When she finally joined their Zoom call for the interview, Baskin was told she would not be able to see Fallon but would only hear him asking her questions. Manners, who acted as a producer, coached her through the "interview," while Pieters stood by ready to play sound bites from The Tonight Show.
During the call, Baskin revealed she agreed to do the interview after some encouragement from her daughter, Jamie, and shared how she and her family — including husband Howard — have been spending their time during the coronavirus pandemic, which has impacted Big Cat Rescue.
"We are working every day with the cats at the sanctuary," Baskin said. "My daughter and I still come into the sanctuary every day because we have to take care of all of the big cats here."
Get the rest of the story at People.
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