Claim:

Comedian and ‘Family Feud’ host Steve Harvey passed away in early 2024 after a tragic accident.

Judgement:

As of early 2024, a false rumor persists that comedian and “Family Feud” game show host Steve Harvey was dead after a “tragic accident” or car crash. It persists in countless social media posts, YouTube videos, and even paid advertisements.

However, a simple check of Harvey’s live weekday radio program and podcast, “The Steve Harvey Morning Show,” credibly confirmed that he was still very much alive as of October 17, 2024. A representative for Harvey declined to comment on the matter.

As we previously reported, death hoax purveyors have targeted Harvey several times in the past. He responded (archived) to one of the hoaxes in July 2023 by posting a photo of himself looking at his phone, along with the caption: “I see Rip Harvey is trending.”

Facebook users posted the rumor

As an example of the rumor, on October 17, a Facebook user posted about Harvey: “Breaking news Steve relayed yesterday in a car accident RIP”

In a separate post on October 9, a user posted: “So Steve Harvey was in a car accident but has survived so far. Why do people lie about his death?”

Also another user posted on October 9: “I pray that Steve Harvey survives this accident. He is such a sweet soul to see on TV all the time.” The same person also added in a comment, “Yes, there is a rumor that he is dead and many said he is in a critical condition. I pray he survives! The accident happened last night.”

Other users in a Facebook group named Steve Harvey fans posted a story about an unnamed “icon” who died. The image is shown in the messages are from December 2023 video featuring the aftermath of a car accident in Los Angeles.

Snopes found no evidence that Harvey was in such a crash around the time of these reports, let alone that Harvey died as a result.

Deceptive YouTube videos

On YouTube, users promoted the false Harvey rumor with misleading videos featuring clickbait-oriented titles and thumbnail images.

For example one video uploaded on October 6 showed the caption: “Devastating news… In a tragic accident last night, Steve Harvey passed away…” The thumbnail image showed a photo of Harvey superimposed on a photo of a car accident. The image also showed a small photo of people carrying a coffin.

A YouTube user created this misleading thumbnail image.

Other YouTube videos from earlier this year also promoted the false rumor that Harvey had died, including some mentioning the so-called “tragic accident.”

Harvey Death Hoax Promoted in Facebook Ads

A search of Meta’s ad library revealed that the company accepted money from advertisers to promote Harvey death hoaxes for months in 2024, until at least March. The technology giant regularly reports quarterly sales figures in the tens of billions.

Ads running on Meta’s Facebook, Instagram and Messenger platforms in October all read: “Steve Harvey dead? ‘Family Feud’ Fans React to Host’s Death Trend!”

The ads directed users to download mobile news aggregator apps from the Google Play Store called News Today, Daily News: Local & Alerts and Local News: Breaking & Latest. All three apps showed thousands of positive reviews and millions of downloads. According to the apps’ brand informationthey are made by people or companies based in China. Meanwhile, the Facebook pages with the ads displayed page management information for users in China, Brazil and the US

We reached out to Meta for comment and asked whether the ads violated their policies and, if so, how they escaped the company’s detection. We will update this story if we receive a response.

Sources:

Ortutay, Barbara. “Facebook Parent Meta posts stronger-than-expected second-quarter results, sending shares higher after-hours.” The Associated PressJuly 31, 2024, https://apnews.com/article/meta-facebook-instagram-earnings-q2-2024-profit-15cbc0fdd0cc599d737388bb5a0c35a3.

“The Steve Harvey Morning Show.” iHarthttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/1141-the-steve-harvey-morning-27928551/. Accessed October 18, 2024.

The Steve Harvey Morning Show | WUR 96.3 FM. https://whur.com/shows/the-steve-harvey-morning-show/, https://whur.com/shows/the-steve-harvey-morning-show/. Accessed October 18, 2024.