April Fools’ Day 2014: Top 4 online pranks

Social networks are awash with rumors, gags and elaborate hoaxes on April 1st.

Each year, use of the hashtag #AprilFoolsDay has climbed ever higher on Twitter, as its membership has swelled.

#AprilFoolsDay has been used more than 400,000 times in the past 24 hours.

1. Vegemite – Australia’s version of Marmite – chose April 1st to “launch” a new energy drink, prompting imaginary delight for some, but disgust for others. The image has been shared almost 8,000 times on its Facebook page.

2. Facebook’s next billion dollar acquisition was announced by Account Killer, an online service that helps people permanently delete their Facebook accounts, and other social media profiles. According to a post on the Account Killer website, Mark Zuckerberg himself explained the decision.

“Researchers predicted that we would lose 80% of our user base by 2017, so we might as well adapt swiftly,” they said Mark Zuckerberg explained.

3. In Turkey, Energy Minister Taner Yildiz chose a strange moment to make what appears to be an April Fool’s joke. Answering journalist’s questions about widespread power cuts during vote counting following Sunday’s local elections.

Taner Yildiz said: “A cat entered a power distribution unit. It was the cause of the blackout and it’s not the first time that it has happened.”

Twitter users took the bizarrely timed comment in their stride.

4. In Kenya, the renowned author Binyavanga Wainaina was “appointed” as the country’s ambassador to Uganda according to The Star newspaper.

The Kenyan writer recently came out, and has championed the rights of gay people in East Africa. If true, Binyavanga Wainaina would likely clash with Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, who recently signed an anti-gay bill into law.