A breakdown of what really happened on Wednesday morning behind the scenes of the TODAY show.
Channel Nine sports reporter Danika Mason has apologised to viewers after a live cross on the Today show went viral, prompting speculation online that she appeared drunk on-air.
The moment unfolded during a light-hearted exchange with host Karl Stefanovic, when Mason appeared slightly flustered and stumbled over a few words before moving into her sports bulletin. Within hours, clips were circulating across social media platforms, racking up views and fuelling commentary both in Australia and overseas.
By the following morning, Mason addressed the situation directly on-air, offering an apology to viewers and acknowledging the attention the moment had received.
Many commentators and industry insiders are now asking why the reporter was not pulled off air.
So, let’s go back and watch how the situation unfolded, using my knowledge of live producing thousands of hours of television.
Watch the McKnight Tonight editorial in the video player below.
Glug glug glug
Should have been ” pulled off live on air”
Seems to be the norm for Channel 9 as Karl can attest to.Danika is still the best female sports reporter even in that condition…
Thank you for delivering this breakdown, Rob. You made it very clear when things actually went wrong, and put the incident into perspective. Yes, it was bad. Mason shouldn’t have had an alcoholic drink during work hours. But she did keep her cool, and was still fairly coherent throughout the ill-fated live cross. She was obviously drunk, but she was far from beinh completley wasted. And she, recognizing that she screwed up, apologized the very next day. Nine could have sacked her on the spot for such an offense. But they didn’t, and I see no reason for them to do so as long as it doesn’t happen again. Mason will learn from this expierence, and won’t likely make this mistake again.