Parker knows he hit the spot with hoax!

Jun 14 2009 by Neil Farrington, Sunday Sun

Incredibly, much of the national media – albeit, online – still accepted said email as gospel, reporting its contents verbatim and Parkinson’s interest in Newcastle as fact.

Much of the media including, ironically, The Times.

However, there were yet more tell-tale signs of the amateur hoaxer.

The spelling of reins as “reigns”. The fact that the group had not yet contacted Newcastle regarding their interest. Mistaking “loyalty” for “royalty” when discussing the rights to Parkinson’s picture.

Our digital friends in London were too busy cutting and pasting this guff to raise a query, though.

Such, perhaps, are the perils of reporting online, where the deadline is always now.

But such is the peril, also, of neither having nor seeking the first clue about events and circumstances in the little old North East.

It didn’t take long for trained newspaper journalists, whose existence stands threatened by the online media “revolution”, to unmask Newcastle’s latest “buyer” as Richard Parker, Sunderland fanatic. But this is one episode of Parkinson worth keeping in mind the next time that a paper based south of Watford pours scorn on fans in the North East.

And Parker and friends got at least one thing spot on.

“This week’s latest developments, with the club trying to sell itself via an email address on the official website, is just the final straw in what has been a wholly embarrassing tenure for Mr (Mike) Ashley,” said their statement.

There’s simply no disputing that.

Say what you like about Mr Parker – his was mission accomplished, after all – it was Mike Ashley, pictured left, and his minions who left Newcastle exposed to every emailing scammer this side of Lagos.

Thanks again, Mike.