'Ligma & Johnson': Two pranksters posing as laid-off Twitter employees trick media outlets

The mainstream media in the US was taken for a spin by a couple of pranksters on Friday, following the news of the formal takeover of Twitter by Elon Musk.

Reportedly, hours after the news, CNBC'sDeirdre Bosa interviewed two individuals, referred to as Twitter's employees by the TV channel outside thecompany's headquarters in San Francisco.

The two were carrying cardboard boxes which suggested they were fired from the job.Bosa approached them and carried the news that Musk had begun firing Twitter employees, en masse.

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“It’s happening.Entire team of data engineers let go. These are two of them," tweeted Bosa alongside the picture of the two pranksters.

"They are visibly shaken. Daniel tells us he owns a Tesla and doesn’t know how he’s going to make payments," she added.

The two supposed employees introduced themselves as“Rahul Ligma" and“Daniel Johnson”. The former name is a reference to a popular internet meme/slang which is used to make a joke, often vulgar in nature.

The CNBC reporter and the other media publications such as Bloomberg, NBC and the Daily Mail failed to recognise the joke,suggesting a lapse in due diligence.

However, the netizens suggested that even if the name proved too difficult for the editors to decipher, the statements given by the duo were a giveaway that they were not real Twitter employees.

“It makes me worry about the future of our democracy… the future of celebrity conservatorship. I mean, when Britney [Spears] happened…” said one of the pranksters.

“Michelle Obama wouldn’t have happened if Elon Musk owned Twitter. Obama in 2008 wouldn’t have happened without Elon Musk owning Twitter…I even own a Tesla, man. I’m a big fan of clean energy, climate change, even free speech too," said another while holdingMichelle Obama’s book “Becoming”.

As soon as Bosa posted the story on her Twitter account, the netizens, after a period of sympathy for the fired employees managed to figure out that the TV channel had been pranked.

As CNBC and other media channels were left red-faced after the gaffe, Musk also had his say in the matter.

Sharing a screenshot of one of the articles, Musk wrote,“Ligma Johnson had it coming."

In another post, the Tesla boss, in a rather sarcastic tone applauded CNBC for its 'ace reporting'.

Musk also commented under another post taking a shot at the channel by saying, "One of the best trolls ever."

(With inputs from agencies)

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