We may disagree about the pronunciation of tomato and vitamin, but the UK, Ireland and the US have traditionally shared a “special relationship” of sorts. Despite this, some US TV presenters still struggle with topics concerning their transatlantic friends. Last week, a US anchor on CNBC’s business show Squawk Box, Joe Kernen, was distressed to learn on air that Ireland doesn’t use the pound. “Why do you have euros in Ireland? Why would you do that?” Interviewee Martin Shanahan, head of Ireland’s foreign development agency, calmly responded: “Why shouldn’t we?”
Kernen persevered, saying that when he visited Scotland he had used pounds. When it was explained to him that the two countries were separate, he refused to believe it. (“But you’re very close. Sort of the same island, isn’t it?”) The increasingly tense discussion (“Northern Ireland has the pound? Oh my God, you guys have got to get it together over there”) eventually ended with Kernen shaking his head and saying, “I don’t know. That’s too confusing,” although not before insulting Irish golfers. Here are some other occasions when things have got lost over the pond.
This isn’t your first time?
After double gold medallist and Olympic champion Mo Farah won the New Orleans half-marathon in February 2013 in 61 minutes, setting a course record, WDSU presenter LaTonya Norton asked the British athlete: “Haven’t you run before?” When he looked puzzled, she said: “This isn’t your first time?” and: “How do you prepare?”
London sprawling
In 2012, a CNN map of the UK located London somewhere in Norfolk, about 120 miles out; it also pinpointed Cornwall as if it were a city, roughly in the spot occupied by Falmouth. The broadcaster later apologised for the “map error”. But at least it was the right continent: last month, a CNN story about killer hornets in China was illustrated by a map of Brazil with the label “Hong Kong”.
He’s not the Messiah
When Russell Brand appeared on MSNBC’s Morning Joe to promote his Messiah Complex tour, anchor Mika Brzezinski revealed she had failed to perform even the most rudimentary research on her interviewee. “Joining us now, he’s a really big deal …Well, I’m told this … I’m not very pop-cultured, I’m sorry.” Was it a humble-brag? Was it that she genuinely didn’t think of Googling him before the interview? A displeased Brand proceeded to take over the interview and discuss Edward Snowden.
Soccerball
Last year, sports presenter Gus “rise and fire” Johnson was appointed by Fox as lead commentator on football. However, within five matches he had made a series of errors including missing offsides and calling the Cardiff-born Ryan Giggs “one of the greatest footballers in English history”.
