Last week, the California television station KTVU accidentally found themselves in a sticky situation when the above names were read on a noon newscast as the “confirmed names” of the pilots of Asiana flight 214. The names are clearly false and incredibly offensive, especially in light of lives lost on the plane crash. KTVU never read the names out loud before the live newscast, but had confirmed them with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Unfortunately, the person they were on the phone with from NTSB was an intern who confirmed the names, despite it not being within the bounds of his authority. The NTSB posted a press release apologizing for the mistake and stating that they do not ever release or confirm names of people involved in transportation accidents. Needless to say, they have fired their intern.
It’s unclear whether the joke originated with the intern, but even if it didn’t, confirming information you clearly know nothing about to the media is terrible decision making and unprofessional. The bigger question is around how much authority student interns should be given in the first place. Employers need to balance the intern’s desire to learn, with the intern’s general lack of experience. When you were an intern, how much authority were you granted?
Full story at The LA Times.
