Paul Horner
Paul Horner (November 5, 1978 – September 18, 2017) was an American writer and comedian who spread fake news online. He led the writing for National Report and later started several other fake-news sites. Major outlets called him a hoax artist and one of the internet’s most prolific hoax makers.
Born in Minnesota, he grew up there before moving to Arizona as a teenager. He developed an early interest in politics and often made political cartoons before turning to online writing.
Horner produced many widely shared fake stories. One famous tale claimed Banksy was actually Paul Horner, a hoax that circulated for years. He also posted other hoaxes that some people treated as real news, including a 2013 government-shutdown claim that Barack Obama funded a Muslim museum. He created domains like abcnews.com.co and cnn.com.de to post fake articles.
In 2015 he wrote a fake story that Yelp was suing South Park. He wrote multiple stories about DeQuincy, Louisiana, some of which led to threats from readers. One story about a man stopping a diner robbery by quoting Pulp Fiction appeared on the Miramax site.
In 2016 his fake stories helped shape online conversations around the presidential election. He later said his aim was to make Trump supporters look foolish and expressed regret about how his work influenced voters. He also spoke about fake news and its effects on society.
Horner died on September 18, 2017, at his home in Phoenix, Arizona, at age 38. The coroner ruled the death an accidental overdose involving prescription drugs, including fentanyl. He had a long history of heart problems.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 15:52 (CET).