A young American comic strip artist who hoaxed thousands of people into believing pop star Britney Spears was dead claims he did it 'to make a point' about the unreliability of the internet as a news source.

Tim Fries, a 22-year-old from Michigan, created a web page that mimicked CNN.com's graphic style, and reported that Britney Spears had been killed in a car accident on 7 October.

By using a URL that began with www.cnn.com, he was able to fool readers into believing it was a real CNN.com page.

He also exploited a flaw within CNN's computer system's that led to the false story being listed on the CNN.com site, complete with its own link.

Mr Fries said he created the hoax to make a point. "With the recent terrorist attacks and such an increasing reliance on the internet as a trusted news source, misinformation could prove to be a powerful weapon," he said. He has now voluntarily taken the page offline.

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