Tori Stafford and the Facebook Rumour Mill
Facebook Message Board Shut Down to Prevent Spread of Rumours
May 20, 2009 Christopher C. Hofley
That appears to be the feeling of some close to the little Woodstock girl known as Tori, who has been missing since April 8 and is now presumed dead.
With the case grabbing national headlines since Tori first went missing, the little girl's aunt, Rebecca Stafford, started an information group on Facebook to gather information in an effort to find her niece. But as is the case with many unmoderated message boards that allow posts from all members, what was meant as a tool to locate the missing girl quickly turned into an outlet for rumours.
Moderator of Tori Stafford Facebook Group Shuts Down Wall Message Board
Following the May 20 announcement that two people had been charged with Tori's abduction and murder, Rebecca Stafford announced that she was shutting down the "wall" portion of the group to prevent the spread of rumours.
"As we've all heard, there has been police progress in this investigation," she wrote on the group's page. "Since we are not sure of what is happening, out of respect for my family, I have closed down the wall temporarily.
"The rumour mill has already been put into overdrive this morning and we are anxiously awaiting the answers to the same questions you are asking."
However, a search of the name Tori Stafford on Facebook returns dozens of hits for other groups, whose message boards remain enabled, dedicated to the little girl. While most posted comments offer words of support for family and friends, rumours continued to float in, which in many cases has caused group members to begin attacking each other.
"I heard (they) found her body, is that true?" wrote one member of a group called "Victoria (Torie) Stafford.
"They found a body but I heard it was male," came the response from another member.
Group Members Upset After Toronto Star Reporter Asks Questions About Tori on Message Board
A request in the same group by Toronto Star reporter Nicole Baute for "stories about Tori for tomorrow's paper" was met with hostility by some member's, who accused Baute of being "a little rude" and asking her to give the family time to grieve.
"Give the family and friends some time to process all this information (without having) to worrie (sic) about reporters wanting stories," suggested one member.
With the many different rumours and conjecture in circulation, Tori's father, Rodney Stafford, has elected not to pay attention to the stories unless the information comes directly from investigators.
"I'm waiting to hear from the police," he told reporters. "There's lots of stuff out there and I can't believe any of it until it comes directly from police."
The two suspects in the Stafford murder
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