Minnesota State Fair calls 'fake news' on rumors of cancellation
If you see a social media post suggesting the Minnesota State Fair has been canceled in 2020, don't believe it.
The Minnesota State Fair has been forced to issue a statement clarifying that this year's event has not been canceled as of this time, after rumors circulated online.
"We have been made aware of posts circulating throughout social media that are disseminating rumors & false information," the statement said.
"The State Fair has not be canceled. All official, accurate and up-to-date info will be shared directly from us: http://mnstatefair.org/updates."
A quick search of Twitter and Instagram pulled up this post shared by an Ohio-based radio station, though where the image originated is unclear.
A big giveaway that the post is fake are the dates of the 2021 festival, which suggests the State Fair is only a week long, when in reality it runs over 12 days.
The last update from the State Fair came last week, when it said it continues to make preparations for this year's fair, but the outlook for late summer events remains unknown.
As such, no decision has yet been made on the fair's cancelation.
That said, Gov. Tim Walz has repeatedly said that large-scale events with big crowds – including sporting events and music concerts – would likely be one of the last things to return given the potential for spreading COVID-19.
With the fair regularly attracting between 125,000-250,000 people a day in recent years, he said it is very difficult to see the fair operating.