The tragic events in Waukesha, in which two young girls are accused of stabbing a friend, have brought internet myth Slender Man into the mainstream spotlight. So much so that the Creepypasta wiki, unofficial home to stories involving the character (and others like him), has had to issue a statement confirming that he is not real.
It's in response to the media attention focused on the tale, a tale that two young girls say they believe is real, and which inspired them to allegedly lure a friend to a sleepover so they could stab her 19 times.
The most important part of the statement, highlighted on the wiki's main page, reads:
ALL WORKS PRESENTED ON THIS WIKI AND OTHER SITES (INCLUDING SLENDERMAN, JEFF THE KILLER, BEN, SONIC.EXE, ETC) ARE FICTIONAL STORIES AND CHARACTERS
Of course, only a small minority of people (mostly newcomers) on the wiki (and the Internet) truly believe what they read here. And for most people, they will not attempt replicate atrocities presented in some of the literature on the wiki. Something like this was bound to happen, considering the size of the Creepypasta community. All it takes is one person to do something insane and radical in the name of someone or something.
This is an isolated incident, and does not represent or attribute the Creepypasta community as a whole. This wiki does not endorse or advocate for the killing, worship, and otherwise replication of rituals of fictional works. There is a line of between fiction and reality, and it is up to you to realize where the line is. We are a literature site, not a crazy satanic cult.
You can read the full statement below. To help out, the Creepypasta wiki is also running a fundraiser for the victim, which you can find here.