Everyone makes mistakes, that’s just a fact. And sometimes those mistakes will happen at work, but when you’re a news anchor or reporter, that means your snafus will be broadcast on live TV. Thanks to our booming technological advances, the clip will also be archived in the deep dark crevices of the internet and spread among the masses. So be careful out there friends! You never know when one of your innocent flubs will go viral and literally break the internet. We’ve collected some of the most hilarious moments caught on live TV just for you, so read on and prepare to LOL!
Sometimes news anchors can find themselves in dangerous situations, even when they are in the studio. This Los Angeles news team’s live broadcast was interrupted by an unusually strong earthquake. The anchors shouted in fear, “we’re having an earthquake” and ducked for cover.
The cameras could be seen shaking and the overhead lights could be heard rattling while the news anchors hid under the desk in front of them. While it’s certainly understandable why the news anchors acted the way they did (safety first and all), Jimmy Kimmel, and other comedians, publicly mocked and teased them… including the male anchor’s own children.
This Milwaukee weather reporter must have drawn the short stick. She was sent out during a snow storm to report live. But after being out in the freezing cold for hours, she lost her cool. During a live report, she decided to give audiences the honest truth.
“I’ve been here since, what, 3:30 this morning, it is now, I don’t even know what time it is, 9:45. I’m exhausted, I’ve run out of things to say. It is snowing, and it sucks here!” she declared. Her rant was met with cheers of glee and laughter from both viewers and her producers.
Fox59 Meteorologist Jennifer Ketchmark was giving her regular weather report when the producers switched to a tower cam overlooking central Indianapolis. Right at that moment a rogue hornet attacked the camera lens. Ketchmark screamed in terror and quickly fled the frame.
After the incident, she even commented that she would end up on a blooper reel on the internet… Well, Jennifer, you did. In the end, she pulled it together and finished her segment without further drama but confessed that she would be regretting her reaction for a long time.
Tensions boiled over on Australia’s Nine News Now when all three women on the segment showed up in white. News anchor Amber Sherlock (center) was NOT going to tolerate it. A fight quickly broke out between Sherlock and Julie Snook (left).
With mics recording, Sherlock berated Snook for not changing over and over again. In the end, Snook was forced to put on a black jacket but not before threatening to leave the segment altogether. “If it’s an issue, I’ll just jump on out, honestly,” Snook said. “Fine, just jump on out, if that’s what you’d like to do,” Sherlock retorted. The incident didn’t occur on air, but the footage “somehow” made its way to the web.
Working in the news is not always fun and games. A lot of the time reporters are forced to cover stories that they consider…well, not really news at all. That’s exactly how news anchor John Brown felt about the Kardashians one morning. He went on a rant about the family live on air.
On Good Day Orlando he refused to talk about a story on Kylie Jenner naming her rabbit Bruce. “I’m sick of this family. It’s a non-story. Nobody cares about this family anymore,” he exclaimed. The clip of his rant went uber-viral, it seems that most people agree with Brown’s point of view.
CNN news anchor Poppy Harlow, pregnant at the time, was live on air discussing the war against ISIS with CNN reporter Becky Anderson when Harlow’s speech started to slow, then slur. She wasn’t on screen at the time but audiences could hear her struggling to breathe before passing out. CNN immediately cut to commercial, leaving viewers concerned.
Thankfully she was fine. “For all of you on Twitter who are asking if I’m ok, thank you so much, I got a little hot and I passed out for a moment, I’m fine, we’re going to take a quick break and we’ll be right back,” Harlow told viewers when she returned.
Reporter Siobhan Riley of Flint Michigan’s WJRT rose to internet stardom for accidentally drawing a rather unsuitable image while mapping on-going construction in the city of Saginaw. Her placement of circles, indicating where the construction started, and a long oblong circle made a rather phallic shape.
Riley apparently had no idea and kept a straight face throughout the entire segment. But the internet 100% noticed. “This was an innocent mistake on behalf of the reporter,” the station’s news director said. “In no way was it intentional.”
We all know that news people work some seriously long hours. But when you’re in front of a camera, you better try to keep it together. On an early morning show of Fox & Friends, Tucker Carlson was feeling especially exhausted.
Carlson had fallen asleep during the commercial break and his co-hosts lovingly neglected to wake him up when the show came back on the air. Needless to say, his colleagues had a good laugh at Carlson’s expense and allowed audiences everywhere to join in on the fun.
Former attorney turned Fox News anchor Kimberly Guilfoyle is not one to shy away from sharing her opinions, even if she’s bound to get a lot of slack for them. Such was the case in 2014 when The Five co-host chimed in on a debate about female constituency.
During the discussion about sexism amid midterm elections, she raised a lot of eyebrows by saying that young ladies don’t have enough “life experience” to be informed voters and should just “go back on Tinder.” All of the foremothers of the suffragette movement just rolled over in their graves.
Celebrations are a time to let loose and have fun. But when you’re a news reporter on a highly reputable network….there are certain expectations of professionalism. At the countdown party to the 2017 new year, CNN’s Don Lemon proceeded to get very very drunk.
At one point his co-host even told him, “The tequila is, like, emitting from your pores!” Audiences then had to endure a very awkward conversation about whether Lemon should pierce his nipple or ear… He went for the ear. And if you were wondering, no, he wasn’t fired for the snafu.
Alaskan news anchor Charlo Greene caught worldwide attention for her dramatic on-air confession and sudden resignation. She was reporting a story about cannabis legislation in the state and the Alaskan Cannabis Club, at the end of the segment, she announced that she was, in fact, the owner of the business and made a dramatic on-air exit.
“Now everything you’ve heard is why I, the actual owner of the Alaska Cannabis Club, will be dedicating all of my energy toward fighting for freedom and fairness, which begins with legalizing marijuana here in Alaska. And as for this job, well, not that I have a choice but, [expletive] I quit,” Greene declared.
Political commentator and talk show host Glenn Beck is known for stirring up controversy but this one really takes the cake. In a 2007 segment of his CNN Headline News program discussing nude photos, Beck said to his female guest, Dina Sansing, “I’ve got some time and a camera. Why don’t you stop by?”
While some took the sexually suggestive comment as a joke, no one was laughing. Especially Sansing. Audiences were left cringing during the awkward silence. In 2006 Beck made a similarly suggestive comment to a different female guest. Needless to say, that was the last time they agreed to be on his show again.
Los Angeles-area reporter Christina Pascucci is probably accustomed to being fawned over, but the brunette broadcaster probably wasn’t expecting to be approached by unwanted amorous advances (at least not from the opposite sex) while giving her dispatch live from the city’s Pride Parade.
While the event usually entails tons of joyous celebration and high-spirited energy, she became the focus of one revelers attention. Pascucci just happened to be talking about the low number of disturbances at the festivities when a total rando making odd faces got in her frame, stated “you’re so f***ing hot” and made a run for it. WTF?
Kimberly Guilfoyle just can’t seem to stay away from controversy. As one of the famously lanky Fox News anchors, the network is always sure to spotlight her perfectly-toned, long limbs live on air. With all that attention on her skin, it’s no surprise that sometimes viewers see a little too much.
Her famously sexy legs have been known to distract not just audiences but fellow presenters as well, but viewers (and intern the Internet) went particularly nutso when things got dangerously close to full frontal while Guilfoyle was front and center wearing a tight red dress. Oops!
The matter of transparency has always been a preoccupation for the media. That being said, Los Angeles-based meteorologist Liberté Chan, took it to the next level when she literally offered audiences a clear view that definitely overshadowed the forecast for the day.
No stranger to wardrobe issues, the weather woman found viewers looking straight through her (but actually) as she had appeared to have chosen a dress that blended a little too well with the green screen. It took a while to realize she blended into the weather map, at which point a colleague offered her his blazer. Clearly, it was hilarious.
As a news anchor or a Meteorologist, you can usually expect your fashion choices to be scrutinized. KTLA Meteorologist Liberte Chan was in the middle of her morning weather report when her producer very obviously handed her a sweater and told her to put it on. Live and on-air she asked him why, he replied that the station had been “getting a lot of emails.”
After putting the sweater on, she commented that she now looked like a librarian. Some of the viewers felt that her black dress was inappropriate for the morning news and looked like she just came in from a night out on the town partying. Chan did, however, apologize if she offended anyone and promised she wouldn’t be wearing the dress again.
Katya Leick from KSNT was attempting to report a segment from the top of a tank at Fort Reilly army base when a swarm of giant buzzing cicadas attacked. While she did try to stay calm and just ignore the huge bugs, one landed on her face.
Leick began screaming and dropped the mic. She attempted to record the segment multiple times and was on the brink of just giving up. Even saying “Ok, nope, not doing it.” She eventually got through the piece without being attacked and high-tailed it out of there.
Stephen Grant murdered his wife Tara Grant in February of 2007. Doesn’t sound like a particularly humorous story, right? Well, for one Michigan reporter it was all laughs live on air. The sight of his mugshot was just too much for her.
We can’t really blame her, just take a look at those eyes. To make matters worse, the producer decided to show the mugshot a second time, making the news anchor lose it. Her obvious laughter could be heard while describing the gruesome murder. Oops.
Australian news presenter Samantha Armytage is a popular face on television Down Under, but it was her midsection that was all the focus after a vigorous sneeze. Upon returning from an ad break, the Sunrise breakfast TV program curiously found co-anchor David Koch holding Armytage’s waistline.
“Welcome back, we’ve got a wardrobe malfunction,” he announced as Armytage is seen squirming and studio crew scrambled to help her out. As it turns out, her strong sneeze had unbuckled her belt and led to a whole hullabaloo. Crickey!
Weather Forecaster Jackie Guerrido has gained quite a following not only in her native Puerco Rico, but also in the rest of the world. The talented meteorologist is known for both her presentation of the forecast and also for her habit of wearing less-than-appropriate clothes on air.
The former Dancing with the Stars contestant was definitely her viewers’ daily ray of sunshine on Wake Up America, a popular TV show in the Hispanic community, with highly figure flattering and attention grabbing outfits that turned her into a viral sensation.
You know the moment (or rather MANY consecutive moments) that one Chicago channel dubbed “The Most Excellent Technical Meltdown in Live Television News History” has to be totally and ridiculously glorious. What spurred one is arguably one of the funniest broadcasting disasters you ask?
The answer: 19 WHOLE MINUTES of audio silence during filming. That’s right, all but one reporter on WGN-Channel 9 were totally inaudible although the cameras were still rolling. Not ones to miss an opportunity to deliver to the people, the anchors penned side-splitting messages on dry-erase boards. Honestly, sounds like ratings boost to us!
Former WNBC nightly news anchor Sue Simmons is a local news legend. She had worked for more than three decades at the New York station, appearing on TV screens all across the city, and has served as a leading African American figure in the industry.
Despite her years of reputable reporting, her most memorable moment, unfortunately, is probably when she was heard yelling “What the f*** are you doing” at co-anchor Chuck Scarborough as a live news teaser ran. Apparently not realized they were still air, she later apologized for the incident. Now that’s one awkward commercial break to come back from.
We’re not sure whether this was a Freudian slip or merely an outrageously hilarious slip of the tongue. Either way, Roanoke, Virginia’s WDBJ7 Holly Pietrza has gone down in news anchor blooper history for putting the “F” in unlucky live TV flubs.
The presenter found herself a viral Internet sensation after she said: “more teens are having [insert a certain word that starts with “F” and rhymes with “luck”]” on a segment about youth finding summer jobs. She calmly continued correcting her F-word faux pas, but the epic mistake had already made a bang, so to say.
This WTLV reporter in the Jacksonville area was covering a story about a fire in a resident’s home and a road closure when he his segment was photobombed. Photobombed by a woman wearing a tutu and unicorn mask. And no, it wasn’t Halloween.
The reporter impressively kept his cool and finished the piece as if nothing had happened. Despite her high-pitched cries in unicorn-language. Our question is: was this woman already dressed as a unicorn or did she see the reporter and rush to get into costume?
Reporter Brittany Kleyn was getting ready for her live broadcast in front of the courthouse when a rogue parrot decided to land on her shoulder. The reporter was so shocked by the unexpected guest that she began to scream in terror, certain that she was under attack.
Luckily the cameraman came to the rescue (after having a good laugh) and removed the parrot from its perch. The parrot, named Lola, actually turned out to be a lost pet. The video of the incident went viral and actually helped Lola reunite with her owner.
In another case of an unexpected guest during live reporting, this Fox reporter was on location at the beach when he was attacked by a large flying insect. And his reaction made him an internet star. In a very dramatic manner, he began screaming and flailing about.
After the ordeal was over he awkwardly looked at the camera, asking, “Was that live? We were live? Oh… brother.” The news anchors back in the studio had a good laugh at his expense, joking that he was attacked by either a large bug or a small drone. Adding that he needed to “shake it off.”
This BBC reporter was covering a story about confiscated drugs being destroyed. How were they destroyed? By setting them on fire. The 8 ½ ton pile of drugs contained heroin, opiates, hashish and other various narcotics. Considering most of the drugs can be smoked, it’s not hard to figure out what happened next.
Both the reporter and the cameraman got high off the fumes of the burning drugs. The reporter broke down in hysterical laughter, unable to finish the segment. They just had to get that picture perfect shot with the burning pile of drugs in the camera’s frame… They certainly got the shot, but not a completed segment.
Sometimes the fit of giggles can take hold at the most inappropriate time. That’s exactly what happened to this Australian news anchor. The team segued from a story about an attractive Irish adventurer to a tragic story about dead people.
The female reporter was exchanging some flirtatious banter with her co-host when the giggles set in and the next segment started. It went something like this: “One protester has been killed and,” starts laughing quietly. “Ten people, including five children, have been killed after a building collapsed…” Then she breaks into full-on laughter. What terrible timing!
Dealing with any animal on live TV is risky business. WJW’s Kathleen Cochrane was reporting on the sentencing of a couple convicted of animal abuse and someone thought it would be a great idea for her to be holding a cute cat during the segment. Not such a great idea…
The second Cochrane starts you can hear the cat growling and squirming to get away from the reporter. The reporter keeps holding onto the feline and ends up getting clawed in the face. Ouch! She ends by saying, “Obviously I’m not a cat person.”
This reporter was live on the air doing a segment on LA’s bid to host the 2024 Olympics when a man decided to creep up behind her and stand uncomfortably close. The reporter, Wendy Burch, was deep in concentration and didn’t notice.
The man was so close she must have felt his breath on her back. When she finally turned her head she jumped and screamed in terror. She laughed the incident off, but really dude? Why? Do us all a favor people, don’t bother others while they’re working.
Presidential elections are a particularly tense time in the news. Emotions are high, no one gets any sleep, and then you announce the wrong US president. That’s what happened in the 2000 elections. CNN announced Al Gore as the winner and as we all know, he didn’t win.
CNN’s declaration was a tad premature as the race was essentially “too close to call.” After a huge mess, recounts, and courts, George W. Bush was named the victor and became 43rd President of the United States. That is one blunder for the record books.
This Dutch reporter wanted to make a splash in her interview with the mayor. Unfortunately, that’s just what happened. They were apparently filming a promotional video for an Easter Festival when she lost her balance leaning against the side of the boat.
The reporter tried unsuccessfully to hold on to the rope next to her but ended up falling into the water. Clearly, there was mass-confusion around her as the mayor attempted to use his mayoral chain to pull her back up and the sound guy tried to fish her out with his boom mic.
It’s no secret that news anchors read from a teleprompter, so the person in charge of what’s written needs to be trustworthy. Otherwise, you might find yourself reading something incredibly embarrassing. But that wasn’t exactly the case with this woman.
This Huntsville, Alabama, news anchor was tricked into announcing her own marriage proposal! Under the guise of receiving exclusive breaking news, she read that she was being proposed to. Luckily for the guy, she said yes. After that, the weatherman reported that there would be a “100 percent chance of some tears of joy tonight.”
During a very serious segment about the disappearance of a sixteen-year-old named Molly Bish Channel 3 put up a photo of the man suspected to be involved in the crime. Rodney Stanger was indeed the suspected man, but instead of his picture, there was a picture of a hamster.
The news anchor kept her cool (when many others might have had a laugh attack) and explained, “Well, no this is not Rodney Stanger obviously.” She promised they would re-show Stanger’s photo later on. Molly Bish’s body was discovered in 2003, the killer has yet to be identified.
Guest expert Robert Kelly was live on air discussing the impeachment proceedings of South Korean president Park Geun-hye when unexpected guests came rushing into the room. His two daughters came traipsing into the room looking for a little attention from dad.
Kelly’s wife is then seen hastily rushing into the room and sweeping up the children. Luckily, everyone had a good laugh in the end. The incident was seen by millions across the globe and made Kelly a viral internet star.
Weather reporter Cory McCloskey ran into a slight snafu when reporting on the current temperatures in the Phoenix metro area. He was a bit surprised to see that in some cities temperatures were well over 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit, one even as high as 2,960 degrees.
The reporter played the obvious technical error off well though. McCloskey admitted that he wasn’t technically authorized to evacuate cities but did jokingly recommend to “get out while you still can.” We all know Arizona is hot, but not that hot.
Disaster struck in July of 2013 when Asiana Airlines flight 214 crash-landed at San Francisco International Airport. 187 people were injured in the incident, three passengers were killed. Local news station KTVU was covering the event live when the “names” of four dead captains were confirmed.
An intern at the National Transportation Safety Board incorrectly confirmed the insulting names to a KTVU staffer and the list made it to the anchor. Without realizing anything was amiss, the news anchor read out the names on air. Needless to say, the network apologized profusely for the incident and those involved were fired.
NBC’s Lee Valsvik was reporting live from Minneapolis sports bar Union Bar & Grill when the segment suddenly got violent. Her cameraman for some reason thought it would be funny to sack the reporter from behind in a mock football play.
He slammed into Valsvik and she went flying onto a nearby table, knocking off glasses and plates and knocking over a chair. She was a good sport about the whole ordeal and could be heard shouting “I’m Ok!” in the background. The news station confirmed that she was not injured in the incident.
This reporter was in the middle of covering a story about an infestation of birds when he decided to walk underneath a tree full of them. Perhaps they heard his insulting comment about them being an infestation because they were certainly not happy.
A bird pooped on his shoulder, which he laughed about. Then he looked up in the trees and some flying feces landed smack dab in his mouth. His screams could be heard from miles away. To be fair, though, it is possible that this news blunder was staged.
Not everything said live on air is scripted. So you’d better watch what you say. This male news anchor was segueing into the weather forecast when he told the meteorologist “maybe we can canoodle before you get into it.” She was obviously shocked and rejected the offer.
That’s when it dawned on him. He didn’t know the correct definition of the word canoodle and admitted on air that he thought it just meant to chat. Haha, opps! The anchor was embarrassed beyond belief and begged for the segment to be over. “Take it away, get me off camera,” he pleaded.
This gutsy reporter was trying to add some spice to his segment about the receding water levels in the lake. So he decided to jump in. Just before jumping he said that the ground should be completely dry. Well… as you can see, it was not.
The reporter found himself knee-deep in the mud while his camera crew and the anchors back at the station almost died of laughter. It definitely was not easy to get out of that mess. We’re betting that he lost his shoes in the ordeal and won’t be trying that again anytime soon.
Mayhem broke out at this Jordanian news station when two guests got into a heated argument over the Syrian Civil War. One guest accused the other of supporting the Syrian revolution, the other was accused of supporting Bashar Assad. Insults were thrown and a tug of war began.
A literal tug of war, with the table that is. They kept pushing the table at each other until it broke, then proceeded to hit each other with the detached table top. All live on the air. We’re sure their employers were less than pleased with their behavior. However, the news station did not take legal action against the two.
Denver’s Fox31 news team may have caused a few heart attacks one morning. During coverage of a helicopter crash in Seattle, WA, the team was viewing Twitter photos of the event being posted online. The first picture was the scene of the crash, then the pictures started to veer a LOT off topic.
The next picture was of Edward Scissorhands, ok, not related to the crash but nothing drastic. Then a pic of an omelet… Then the unthinkable. A pic of penis live on air. The Twitter feed was promptly cut off, revealing the news team’s looks of sheer horror. They continued the story as if nothing happened. If it’s not acknowledged, it never happened…
It may have been just a slip of the tongue or maybe it was an accidental confession but this news anchor royally embarrassed herself on live air. During a segment on the subject of disciplining children, the male anchor asked his colleague whether she was spanked as a child.
Her answer? She replied, “as a kid, no.” Implying that while she wasn’t spanked as a kid, she has been spanked at other times in her life. Haha. She immediately realized her mistake and tried to take it back, but the damage was already done.
Being live on TV is nerve-racking. For this rookie reporter, the stress, unfortunately, got the best of him. It was A.J. Clemente’s first day on the job at Bismarck, North Dakota’s KFYR. His first, and last day, unfortunately. The news was live on-air, but he had no idea.
The broadcast started off with Clemente cursing, his co-anchor did her best to continue with her report but was obviously startled by his outbursts. When he finally realized they were live on-air, the only words he was able to get out of his mouth were a jumble of word soup.
CTV News Toronto meteorologist Tom Brown was taking a break from the green screen forecast for a segment that involved feeding pumpkins to Polar Bears at the local zoo. All was going well as the jubilant anchor started throwing the orange squashes from a perch above the carnivorous animals’ pool enclosure.
The camera panned back and forth between the excited bear and an excited Brown. Two pumpkins successfully splashed into the water before he threw the third and final one along with an unintended additional object – his microphone! He was then seen hilariously, yet silently, gesturing to the studio. Luckily, no animals were harmed in the amusing mic toss.
Source: Trend Chaser
