A news piece stating smog in Beijing had become so bad that the government displayed the sunset on an enormous LED screen in Tiananmen Square has been proven false.

According to a report by Atlantic Media's Quartz, the sunrise shown on the screens is routinely played. It's actually an advertisement for tourism in Shandong province. The sunrise reportedly appears on the screen for 10 seconds or so, on a continuous loop.

The piece, which was originally published by the Daily Mail, was quickly picked up by TIME, CBS News, and more. Many writers criticized the Chinese government for not taking steps to alleviate the smog problem, rather, attempting to cover it up. Others nabbed the opportunity to take snarky jabs.

"The glorious sunrise was broadcast as a part of a patriotic video loop," TIME wrote.

The story may have surfaced due to real reports of thick smog in many Chinese cities last week.

The smog was so thick on Thusday that Beijing residents were covered in a grey haze with a density of PM2.5 - about 350 to 500 micrograms - by the early afternoon. The World Health Organization suggests not being exposed to air pollution that measures less than 20 micrograms.

The smog became so bad in some areas that light was barely visible, leading some news outlets to believe the screens were displaying the sun continuously in absence of the real thing.

It was true, that pollution obscured visibility in China last week, but the severity was certainly exaggerated by the fake screen story.