<p>There has been much discussion regarding fake news believability and consumption that is based on confirmation bias, as well as the impact of fake news on society. However, there has been little research that demarcates identifiable fake news from misinformation, satire, or parody in unknown situations. IS research also fails to recognize other forms of news that are similar and might not be true, including the long-existing tabloid news. This research derives a Content Dimensions-Overton Window-Perceived Utility (COP) model for fake news consumption that identifies factors that impact readers’ tendencies to accept or reject identifiable fake news even when the user does not have any predefined belief to confirm the news. It uses social media data collected during the 2020 Coronavirus outbreak and applies Multi-Attribute Utility Theory and the Overton window to identify a set of factors that represents users’ acceptance or rejection under unknown situations. These COP model factors are further analyzed by comparing fake news to traditional tabloid journalism to identify how these forms differ. The results show that individuals are highly sensitive to tone and emotional appeal when deciding to accept or reject a piece of news (tabloid or fake). However, they are less sensitive to truthfulness when dealing with identifiable fake news in uncertain situations than they are with tabloid journalism.</p>