It’s not unusual to be afraid of clowns — but are Apple executives so scared they are getting rid of the clown emoji?
According to a screenshot of a CNBC headline shared May 15 on X, “Upcoming Apple device update set to remove clown emoji: sources say emoji used as a Far-Right ‘dog whistle.’”
(Screenshot from X post)
But this headline is fake.
The image appears to be an edited screenshot of a real CNBC story about McDonald’s. The author and time stamp match, but the original headline was replaced. A CNBC spokesperson confirmed to PolitiFact that the article about the clown emoji was never published on CNBC.com.
The first iteration of the altered image appears to have been shared at 3:27pm on May 15 on patriots.win, a pro-Donald Trump message board. Then it was shared by conservative X account DC_Draino, which later deleted the post. The false headline sparked real outrage from many X users at Apple.
The clown emoji is frequently used to express humor or self-deprecation or to mock other people online. But it is not considered a hate symbol, such as those tracked in an Anti-Defamation League database.
Apple has changed emojis before, most famously swapping out the black pistol emoji for a green squirt gun in 2016. But we found no authentic reporting that Apple plans to get rid of the clown emoji on their devices.
CNBC never reported that Apple is “set to remove clown emoji” because it is a “far-right dog-whistle.” The image of the headline was digitally altered. We rate this viral image Pants on Fire!