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A look back at some April Fools' stories NPR used to run

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Today, you're probably on guard for April Fools' pranks.

A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:

Yeah. MORNING EDITION decided a few years ago not to produce any tall tales on April 1 - something about fake news not being such a fun idea anymore. Anyways, NPR did have a long tradition of trying to fake out people on April Fools' Day.

MARTIN: Here's the time we told you about Starbucks building a coast-to-coast coffee pipeline.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #1: The water comes in from the mountains, and at the precise second the beans are roasted and ready, they're added to the water in the spin-terfuge (ph), and off they go.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #2: They have a plan to divert this slurry into individual homes.

MARTÍNEZ: Who would believe that?

MARTIN: Me.

MARTÍNEZ: We also tried to convince you, that there were...

MARTIN: I would.

MARTÍNEZ: ...People who long for dial-up modems again - the slow internet movement.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)

JONATHAN KERN: (As Dr. Langsam) The heart rate slows down. The thinking improves. The complexion improves. It's just amazing what it will do.

MELISSA BLOCK: And the whole perception of time, I guess, shifts as you slow down.

KERN: (As Dr. Langsam) Well, that's a very interesting point. While we can't actually lengthen the human life, we can certainly make it feel much, much longer by slowing down the internet.

MARTIN: OK. I knew that was fake. We brought you news of a sagging market for maple syrup and neglected trees so full of sap that they were exploding.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)

ROBERT SIEGEL: An untapped tree is a time bomb ready to go off

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON #3: Be - hey. Oh, watch it. Be careful there.

(SOUNDBITE OF EXPLOSION)

MARTÍNEZ: Good to hear Robert Siegel's voice there. Now, those are just a few of the many examples over the years. But as we said, we're done with all that. So no more fake stories on April Fools' Day. We promise.

MARTIN: Maybe.

MARTÍNEZ: Probably.

MARTIN: Maybe.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Michel Martin is the weekend host of All Things Considered, where she draws on her deep reporting and interviewing experience to dig in to the week's news. Outside the studio, she has also hosted "Michel Martin: Going There," an ambitious live event series in collaboration with Member Stations.
A Martínez is one of the hosts of Morning Edition and Up First. He came to NPR in 2021 and is based out of NPR West.