Lead image for NTV’s frequent technical hitches, live-mic gaffe could put off viewers.
On Sunday, an unhappy viewer made the following comment on WhatsApp: “What’s happening on NTV news? The newscaster didn’t know she was on air, and was busy adjusting her hair, yawning, clearing her throat… even took a phone call, and said, ‘We can’t have this conversation’.”
This embarrassing moment, however brief, reflects poorly on the anchor and the station. It distracts the viewer from the news content and makes them focus on the individual presenting the news instead.
The journalist becomes the news.
More embarrassing live-mic or hot-mic gaffes, as these mistakes are known, have been recorded in many other stations in the past.
There have been cases of presenters dancing, or cursing the script or an individual, unaware that they are on air. Television and film experts say the gaffes are caused by equipment malfunction, failure by the presenter to pay attention, or miscommunication between the presenter and the technicians.
Sunday’s live-mic incident is, however, the least of NTV’s troubles. The station seems to be grappling with technical hitches, particularly during its prime-time bulletin, NTV Tonight.
A week hardly goes by before a bulletin experiences a technical difficulty, such as sound failure, causing a delay and forcing the anchor to apologise to viewers. There have also been cases where the anchor introduces a story but an unrelated clip is played, and has to be withdrawn. At other times, the anchor introduces a story, only to announce a delay in its airing.
These technical hitches compromise the bulletin’s quality and credibility. They put off viewers who expect a flawless experience. When the audio drops or the video freezes mid-story, an impatient viewer will easily switch to another station. At a time when television viewership is declining globally — with the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2026 revealing that social media and online video platforms have overtaken traditional television for the first time as the world's leading source for news — NTV cannot afford to drop the ball on quality.