Radiohead Concert at Wall Street Protest Was Just Hoax

It seemed almost conceivable. Radiohead, the British band that has built a career on its distrust of authority, had just played two nights in Manhattan. The band’s presence would provide star power for a two-week-old protest movement that has complained of tepid media attention.

Still, the logistics of putting on a concert on short notice in Zuccotti Park, the protesters’ three-quarter-acre headquarters in the financial district, were daunting. Public address system? Crowd control? Permits?

Those doubts were readily confirmed by a call to the band itself.

The band’s spokeswoman issued a statement: “We can officially say this is not happening.” All the same, the Web was going crazy. Perhaps “officially” was a wink? Fans and the curious filtered toward the park.

The spokeswoman, Laura Eldeiry, issued a firmer statement. “It’s definitely not going to happen,” she said. “It’s a false rumor.”

At Zuccotti Park, the rumors refused to die. Maybe Thom Yorke, Radiohead’s leader, would show up with an acoustic guitar.

He would not. At 3:39 p.m., Occupy Wall Street’s publicist, Patrick Bruner, sent out a second e-mail.

“I got hoaxed. Radiohead was never confirmed. Completely our fault. Apologies. The band were victims in this hoax as well.”

Four o’clock came and went. Mr. Yorke did not show, though the band sent a note of support on Twitter. But the crowd in the park had tripled over the course of the afternoon.