CNN Boneheads Apologize For Making Everyone Think Michael J. Fox Passed Away

We've seen some mistakes over the years, but inadvertently making people think that a beloved actor like Michael J. Fox had passed away — when he's still very much alive — is a biggie.

And CNN did it.

The news network published a piece on its website titled "Remembering The Life of Michael J. Fox."

Now, you're allowed to remember people's lives when they're still alive, but usually that kind of phrasing is reserved for when they die. This is why those who saw it were understandably concerned about the well-being of the Back to the Future star, who has battled Parkinson's disease for decades.

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Fortunately, there were no other reports of Fox's death… because he's not dead. In fact, his own representatives dismissed this and pointed out that he had been at an event the night before.

"Michael is doing great," they told TMZ. "He was at PaleyFest yesterday. He was on stage and was giving interviews."

The piece was pulled from the CNN site, and the network issued an apology.

"The package was published in error; we have removed it from our platforms and send our apologies to Michael J. Fox and his family," they said.

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This is a major embarrassing and irresponsible gaffe… but I get how it can happen.

A lot of websites (not OutKick, though; we wait for them to go and then do it because we're respectful) pre-write people's obituaries and keep a library of them.

A lot of them.

I used to work at a site that did this, and I remember scrolling through the library of pre-written obits. Some could have been on standby for decades, like Dick Van Dyke and, at the time, Queen Elizabeth, but there were also ones for people you wouldn't expect to be next in life's unending line of bucket kickers.

All you have to do is fill in a few details, and — voila! — instant obit.

I don't know for sure, but I assume CNN does this and probably has additional posts ready for certain people. All it takes is one accidental click-eroo on the old "PUBLISH" button, and you've got a PR headache.

While we're on the topic of accidentally making people think a beloved celebrity has died, how about we limit black and white portraits on social media?

Every time I see one, I panic, thinking the person in it has died, but it's usually just some idiot getting artsy.