In October 2003, an article looking very much as though it appeared on CNN.com began showing up on in email boxes and the Web, quoting a North Carolina State University study that found fellatio could significantly decrease a woman’s risk of breast cancer. The article quoted a “Dr. Len Lictepeen,” who was identified as deputy chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society.

Since the article appeared, its author, Brandon Williamson, a student at NC State, has told media outlets he created the page as a spoof, sent it to a few friends, and posted it on an NC State Web site. A few weeks later, it got picked up by at least one apparently legitimate news site, and from there became the stuff of Internet lore. Eventually, CNN, the Associated Press and others whose names were used in the piece began to claim copyright infringement, and Mr. Williamson changed the names of the organizations quoted in the article, including that of the American Cancer Society.