How deaf quadriplegic David Rose duped twitter, Kim Kardashian and the press
REMEMBER Twitter’s David “Dave on Wheels” Rose, the 24-year-old, deaf quadriplegic with cerebral palsy? He composed tweets with his eyes..? Sure you do.
The Daily Mail wrote about Dave:
In a tragic turn of events a deaf quadriplegic who found internet fame with his touching, witty Facebook and Twitter posts has died. 24-year-old David Rose captured the hearts of thousands as he took to the web with his seemingly unfaltering positive attitude and love for life despite the odds. But on Thursday he lost his life-long battle against the severe cerebral palsy he was born with that had committed him to existence in a wheelchair. He succumbed to pneumonia after being admitted to hospital with a cold late last week.
Radar Online told us:
But if he did survive, he promised he would “write a funny new post with lot of boob jokes in it.” Tragically, he did not, and Nicole shared her amazing brother’s final words.
Kim Kardashian quoted him:
“Always do what is right. Always! But forgive yourself if you forget sometimes.” -David Rose
Only, Dave is not dead. He never existed.
Rose has confessed:
No celebrity or fame was intended in this ruse; it all came quite fast and was a total surprise. Yes, David has been online since 2007, so I mean the fame part of it. Up until recently he only had a handful of online friends. The quick and furious fame is actually what brought about the end of it all.
David was just a character, a part of my psyche, and fame would soon reveal what it has revealed today. So, the character passed. In hindsight it probably would have been better just to shut it all down and have everyone wonder what the hell happened, but the final post was meant to have the effect it did. To inspire people to love and live a better life, and the public knowledge that it came under this false pretense takes it all away. I hope that people who were moved by it still live by it, but it seems unlikely. It’s possible that more damage has been done in your reveal than in the original deception. […]
To all of those people affected, from those I’d never exchanged a word with to the ones I’d had lengthy and heartfelt conversations with over the years, I apologize. I am very, VERY sorry for the hurt this has caused you. […]
I’m sure there will be a lot of talk about this in days, weeks and possibly even months to come, because hey, it’s a good story! “Sharp Internet Sleuth Reveals Sham!” Only this story results in a LOT of anger, hurt and betrayal, whereas David’s was also a good story that resulted in a bit of sorry but also lives that had been motivated and inspired.
I was sincerely hoping for the latter.
PS – Anyone seen Jeffrey Archer?
Spotter: TheChive, Dave-on-wheels-exposed
Posted: 16th, October 2012 | In: Celebrities, Technology Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
