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You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/27/arts/television/pig-rescues-goat-and-the-video-is-really-cute-but-totally-faked.html

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Really Cute, but Totally Faked Really Cute, but Totally Faked
(35 minutes later)
It seemed too adorable to be fake, but it was too good to be true.It seemed too adorable to be fake, but it was too good to be true.
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class="credit">By Comedy Central

class="caption">Footage provided by Comedy Central demonstrates how they produced a viral video sensation.

Nathan Fielder, the star of “Nathan for You,” a documentary-style series that will have its premiere on Comedy Central on Thursday.
After making his crew members sign nondisclosure agreements, Mr. Fielder uploaded his video to YouTube one evening under the pseudonym “jebdogrpm” and gave it a brief, ungrammatical description: “Pig saves goat who’s foot was stuck underwater at petting zoo,” it read. “Simply amazing.”
By the following morning Mr. Fielder, who said he did not make any additional efforts to promote the video online or through social networks, found it posted on sites like Gawker and Reddit. He also started receiving requests through his YouTube account from television programs that wanted to show his video. In short messages to producers of “Good Morning America” and Anderson Cooper’s daytime talk show, “Anderson Live” — neither of whom asked how the video was made — Mr. Fielder gave them permission to broadcast it but offered no other details about it.
When the video was played on “Good Morning America,” Elizabeth Vargas tried to ask her fellow presenters how the pig had freed the goat, but she was met with laughter. “Every day with Elizabeth, it’s like, ‘How did this happen?’ ” replied the weather anchor Sam Champion.
Mr. Fielder stopped responding to other messages, including what he said were at least six “fairly persistent” requests from NBC.
That did not dissuade NBC from showing the video on its “Nightly News,” with an introduction from the anchor Brian Williams, who said he and his colleagues felt “duty-bound to pass this on.” (Mr. Williams added that “we have no way of knowing if it’s real.”) A statement from NBC News, attributed to a spokesperson, said: “This was presented as a video that had been making the rounds on the Internet — and as Brian clearly stated, its authenticity couldn’t be verified. We treated it for exactly what it was: an aside, a fun moment, the kind of ‘What’s going on here?’ picture that is the coin of the realm on social media." Representatives for ABC and Fox News did not immediately comment on Tuesday in response to inquiries about the video.
Meanwhile, Mr. Fielder and his producers spoke with Comedy Central executives about the unexpected popularity of the video. There were discussions about whether Mr. Fielder or a confederate should give interviews to help promote it (without quite addressing its authenticity), but this plan was not pursued.
“We made a collective decision to not turn it into something else, because it wasn’t about pranking the news media,” said Kent Alterman, Comedy Central’s president for content development and original programming. “It didn’t seem like anyone was being harmed in this case.”“We made a collective decision to not turn it into something else, because it wasn’t about pranking the news media,” said Kent Alterman, Comedy Central’s president for content development and original programming. “It didn’t seem like anyone was being harmed in this case.”
Ms. McBride of the Poynter Institute said Comedy Central had “a really low level of responsibility” to tell the truth, but that the network’s obligation “pales in comparison to the obligation of journalists who vet information, because the journalists have made a promise to their audience that they will tell the truth.”Ms. McBride of the Poynter Institute said Comedy Central had “a really low level of responsibility” to tell the truth, but that the network’s obligation “pales in comparison to the obligation of journalists who vet information, because the journalists have made a promise to their audience that they will tell the truth.”
“When there’s so many nuggets of raw, unfiltered information out there,” Ms. McBride said, “our job increasingly becomes to find the most meaningful ones and tell the story behind it.”“When there’s so many nuggets of raw, unfiltered information out there,” Ms. McBride said, “our job increasingly becomes to find the most meaningful ones and tell the story behind it.”
Though Mr. Williams of NBC had offered his caveat that he did not know if the video was real, Ms. McBride said this was not sufficient.Though Mr. Williams of NBC had offered his caveat that he did not know if the video was real, Ms. McBride said this was not sufficient.
“Go find something cute that is real,” she said.“Go find something cute that is real,” she said.
Mr. Fielder was reluctant to draw any larger conclusions from this incident, but he said he was certain he had not done anything wrong.Mr. Fielder was reluctant to draw any larger conclusions from this incident, but he said he was certain he had not done anything wrong.
“I definitely don’t think I have the same ethical responsibility as the news,” he said. “And I definitely don’t see anything wrong, ethically, with posting a video on YouTube that is presented as something it’s not.”“I definitely don’t think I have the same ethical responsibility as the news,” he said. “And I definitely don’t see anything wrong, ethically, with posting a video on YouTube that is presented as something it’s not.”
Asked if the media had done its due diligence before helping to circulate his video, Mr. Fielder responded after some hesitation.Asked if the media had done its due diligence before helping to circulate his video, Mr. Fielder responded after some hesitation.
“When I watch the news,” he said, “I assume that what I’m seeing, there has been some research done.”“When I watch the news,” he said, “I assume that what I’m seeing, there has been some research done.”