It was a hoax.
When a beautiful young French woman took to Youtube to launch a search for the handsome father of her unborn baby, the story made headlines all over the world.
But today we can reveal that the story was part of a clever marketing ploy to put the beachside Australian town of Mooloolaba on the map… and it’s worked a treat.
The Natalie Amyot in the video clip has been named as 26-year-old marketing and tourism student Alizee Michel, who created the video with Sunny Coast Social Media in Queensland.
In a second video posted today, Ms Michel announced ‘I found him!’ before stepping aside to reveal her boss Andy Sellar, who adds:
‘This has been a viral video for Holiday Mooloolaba. My name is Andy Sellar and I own a company called Sunny Coast social media,’
‘We do viral videos for businesses. Now I know there is going to be a lot of you that are upset by this… maybe not too happy.
‘We just wanted to put Mooloolaba on the map because it’s a wonderful place.’
The hoax was entertaining while it lasted, but not everyone saw the funny side. Local Mark Furler, writing in the Sunshine Coast Daily, said the joke was a ‘pathetic’ marketing effort:
“Mooloolaba. the place a young girl comes to get pregnant after a fling. Mooloolaba, the place where you make up lies to market yourself. Mooloolaba, the place where you put people off from responding to future appeals. We can do better than that. Much better.”
How do you feel about the baby daddy stunt? Let us know on Twitter @HerFamilydotie.
