In 1891, Mariano de Cavia, the most famous Spanish journalist of his time, published an article in the newspaper El Liberal chronicling a terrible event: A fire in the early hours of the morning had completely devoured the Prado Museum in Madrid. The article spared no detail, describing how the fire burned “on all four sides” and how several citizens were injured while trying to save the remains of works by Velázquez, Raphael, Rubens, Titian, and Goya. The chilling news spread throughout Madrid within hours, causing a huge sensation. But it was a lie. All the author wanted was to ...