Karen Wright, one of Bowie's co-directors at 21 Publishing, said the hoax was not meant to be malicious: "Part of it was, we were very amused that people kept saying 'Yes, I've heard of him.'
Karen Wright, one of Bowie's collaborators at 21 Publishing, noted that some aspect of the prank was intended to be humorous: "A part of it was, we were amused by how persistent people were in saying they knew who he was.