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Exclusive | Hollywood star’s ex, William Hasley, found dead on LA’s Runyon Canyon hiking trail

Nypost · · 547 words · By Jeremy Louwerse; Ross O'Keefe
Hollywood Connections Obituary/Death Report
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What to know about Hollywood Connections

Metro exclusive Hollywood star’s ex, William Hasley, found dead on LA’s Runyon Canyon hiking trail See more of our coverage in your search results.

Claims checked 10
Techniques found 1
Topics 2

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center50%
Right50%

2 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Metro exclusive Hollywood star’s ex, William Hasley, found dead on LA’s Runyon Canyon hiking trail See more of our coverage in your search results.

Why it matters

Add The California Post on GoogleCaitlyn Jenner’s friend and ghostwriter William Hasley has been identified as the Runyon Canyon hiker found dead last Saturday.

Common ground

The 78-year-old, who was also a screenwriter and former husband of actress Robin Riker, penned Jenner’s book “Finding the Champion Within” for Simon & Schuster.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/06/09/us-news/caitlyn-jenners-biographer-william-hasley-…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning
Loaded Language 70% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.
Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 10 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6
verified Verified By Reference 3
info Single Source 1
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Claim 1: “Hasley was also an instructor in screenwriting at UCLA.”
CORROBORATED
The claim is mentioned in the NY Post and explicitly confirmed by the UCLA Extension Instructor Biography page.
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cross reference SUPPORTS — Hasley was also an instructor in screenwriting at UCLA.
https://nypost.com/2026/06/09/us-news/caitlyn-jenners-biogra…
verified
Claim 2: “His actress ex-wife, Riker, became a star on the Showtime sitcom “Brothers” as Kelly Hall in the 1980s.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia confirms Robin Riker starred in the Showtime comedy series 'Brothers' (1984–1989).
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Robin Riker (born October 2, 1952, in New York City) is an American actress and author, known for her versatile career in television spanning over four decades, with prominent roles in sitcoms and soa…
https://grokipedia.com/page/Robin_Riker
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Robin Riker, born on October 2, 1952 (1952-10-02) (age 73) in Manhattan, New York, USA, is an actress. She guest stars as Deborah Jane in the fourth season episode, "Money Trap". She has guest-starred…
https://justified.fandom.com/wiki/Robin_Riker
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Robin Riker is beautiful actress who unfortunately never took off to stardom.Robin's first turn at the big screen came in 1980 where she played the character Marisa Kendall in "Alligator."
https://everything2.com/title/Robin+Riker
+ 1 more evidence source
verified
Claim 3: “The 1996 self-help book described Jenner’s athletic accomplishments and aimed to use a 10-step program to “reboot” the readers’ life.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
While the existence of the book is confirmed, the specific details about the 1996 publication date and the '10-step program to reboot life' are not explicitly detailed in the provided evidence snippets.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1996th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 996th year of the 2nd millennium, the 96th …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Caitlin Elizabeth Clark (born January 22, 2002) is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Regarded as one of the greate…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caitlin_Clark
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Caitlyn Marie Jenner (born William Bruce Jenner, October 28, 1949) is an American media personality and retired Olympic gold medal-winning decathlete. Jenner played college football for the Graceland …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caitlyn_Jenner
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 4: “The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office has not released a cause of death, deferring any official determination.”
CORROBORATED
Both the NY Post and cleveland.com report that the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office has not yet ruled on a cause of death.
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cross reference SUPPORTS — The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office has not released a cause of death, deferring any official determination.
https://nypost.com/2026/06/09/us-news/caitlyn-jenners-biogra…
info
Claim 5: “The Hollywood screenwriter’s television credits include “Swift Justice;” “Ghost Stories;” “Murder, She Wrote;” “Kung Fu; Young Riders;” and “Highway to Heaven.””
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided web search results for this specific claim returned irrelevant information about Prince William and general name meanings, failing to confirm the specific TV credits listed.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — William, Prince of Wales - Wikipedia
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William,_Duke_of_Cambridge
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — William is a masculine given name of Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066, [2] and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William
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web search NEUTRAL — 5 days ago · A royal biographer claimed Prince William's “he knows best” attitude has sparked disagreements with King Charles over the years.
https://www.realitytea.com/2026/07/24/prince-william-verdict…
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Claim 6: “Caitlyn Jenner’s friend and ghostwriter William Hasley has been identified as the Runyon Canyon hiker found dead last Saturday.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent news sources (NY Post, Google News, Wide Open Country) and a Wikipedia entry confirm that William Hasley, Caitlyn Jenner's ghostwriter, was found dead on a hiking trail in Runyon Canyon.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — William Hasley (1947 or 1948 – June 6, 2026) was an American biographer and television writer. He was best known for co-writing the motivational book Finding the Champion Within along with Caitlyn Jen…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Hasley
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The following notable deaths in the United States occurred in 2026. Names are reported under the date of death, in alphabetical order. A typical entry reports information in the following sequence: Na…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_deaths_in_the_United_Stat…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Robin Riker (born October 2, 1952) is an American actress and author. She made her big screen debut in the 1980 horror film Alligator and later went to star in the Showtime comedy series Brothers (198…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Riker
+ 4 more evidence sources
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Claim 7: “The writer was found in an area near Runyon Canyon at about 7:05 p.m. on Saturday, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.”
CORROBORATED
The time (7:05 p.m. Saturday) and location (near Runyon Canyon) as reported by the LAFD are corroborated by NY Post, Newsmax, and AOL.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD or LA City Fire) is the full-service fire department of the city of Los Angeles, California, United States, and of the city of San Fernando, California, United St…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_Fire_Department
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — From January 7 to 31, 2025, 14 destructive wildfires affected the Los Angeles metropolitan area and San Diego County in California, United States. The fires were exacerbated by drought conditions, low…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_2025_Southern_Californ…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD) provides firefighting and emergency medical services for the unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County, California, as well as 59 cities through contra…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_County_Fire_Depart…
+ 4 more evidence sources
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Claim 8: “He also wrote screenplays for Universal Pictures, Warner Brothers, and 20th Century Fox, among others.”
CORROBORATED
The claim that he wrote screenplays for Universal, Warner Brothers, and 20th Century Fox is confirmed by NY Post, UCLA Extension instructor bio, and a personal bio page.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — ” Will sold his own screenplays to Universal Pictures, Warner Brothers, 20th Century Fox, Logo Entertainment, Total Media Corp., Minds-Eye Pictures. Will ...
http://www.williamhasley.com/bio.html
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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 9, 2026 ... Hasley also wrote screenplays for Universal ...
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/celebrity/articles/caitl…
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web search NEUTRAL — Instructor Biography: Screenwriter and WGA member who has sold feature scripts to 20th Century Fox, Universal Studios, Warner Bros., and Laurence Marks ...
https://www.uclaextension.edu/instructors/william-hasley
+ 1 more evidence source
verified
Claim 9: “She became a television regular for the next decade, and saw her most recent notable credit on the long-running “The Bold and the Beautiful” show as Beth Logan.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia and The Bold and the Beautiful Wiki explicitly confirm Robin Riker played the role of Beth Logan from 2008 to 2010.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — From 2008 to 2010 she played the role of Beth Logan in the CBS daytime soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful. ... Riker began her career appearing in episodes of ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Riker
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Elizabeth "Beth" Logan (nèe Henderson) is a fictional character on The Bold and the Beautiful. The character is first introduced in 1987 and is written out ...
https://soaps.fandom.com/wiki/Beth_Logan
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Robin Riker is an American actress and author. She portrayed the role of Beth Henderson Logan on The Bold and the Beautiful from March 23, 2008 until the ...
https://theboldandthebeautiful.fandom.com/wiki/Robin_Riker
+ 1 more evidence source
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Claim 10: “The 78-year-old, who was also a screenwriter and former husband of actress Robin Riker, penned Jenner’s book “Finding the Champion Within” for Simon & Schuster.”
CORROBORATED
The claim that Hasley was 78, a screenwriter, former husband of Robin Riker, and author of 'Finding the Champion Within' for Simon & Schuster is confirmed by NY Post, cleveland.com, LBC, and Wikipedia.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — William Hasley (1947 or 1948 – June 6, 2026) was an American biographer and television writer. He was best known for co-writing the motivational book Finding the Champion Within along with Caitlyn Jen…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Hasley
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of Murder, She Wrote episodes in the order that they originally aired on CBS. Most of the episodes took place either in Jessica Fletcher's fictional hometown of Cabot Cove, Maine, or in…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Murder,_She_Wrote_epis…
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web search NEUTRAL — William Hasley, who co-wrote Caitlyn Jenner's biography, has been found dead on a hiking trail in California. Listen to this article.The screenwriter and former husband of actress Robin Riker, co-wrot…
https://www.lbc.co.uk/article/caitlyn-jenner-biographer-will…
+ 3 more evidence sources
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.