25 bizarre viral stories of 2012

Abraham Lincoln invented Facebook?

Blogging consultant Nate St. Pierre decided to have a little fun with the Internet by fabricating a story about how Lincoln was rejected for a patent in 1845 for a Facebook-like newspaper.

St. Pierre got a few bites and the story spread through the Internet and Twitter as a newly-discovered fact. The viral hoax was picked up by a few tech blogs.

Taking a jab at reporters, St. Pierre's final reason for the hoax was to "to illustrate one of the drawbacks to our 'first and fastest' news aggregation and reporting mentality, especially online."

Credit: National Portrait Gallery