The Bowling Green Massacre

In this article, I examine the vernacular, parodic response to one example of fake news, the “Bowling Green Massacre.” Much of this was posted on the internet, including photo-based memes, tweets, songs, and faux survivor interviews. Although such internet folklore is often seen as unrelated to place, in this case, there were many place-based references, and the response in Bowling Green, Kentucky, also included community celebrations. These responses form a complex web of counter-narratives that claim agency in the face of “fake” narratives emanating from the Trump administration.