A radio station joked that pop star Britney Spears died
in a car accident Tuesday night, setting off an international flurry of rumors.
Radio station KEGL "The Eagle" in Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas said Spears,
18, and her boyfriend, Justin Timberlake of boy band N*SYNC, were involved in a
car accident.
Television stations in Dallas started receiving phone calls from people
who had heard the rock radio station joking around that Britney died in Los
Angeles. However, Timberlake, 20, is on tour with N*SYNC in Philadelphia,
where the group is scheduled to perform Wednesday night. Police in Los Angeles
and Philadephia had not heard any reports of such an incident.
The rumor, most likely fueled by the Internet and e-mails, traveled
overseas to Moscow, where CNN's bureau there -- and many television stations in
Australia -- called CNN's Atlanta headquarters to find out if the reports were
accurate.