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VIDEO: Open Mic Incident During COVID Briefing Goes Viral

The term “live streaming” was taken to a whole new level during Tuesday’s provincial COVID-19 news conference in New Brunswick.

It started as a normal briefing with Dr. Jennifer Russell, chief medical officer of health, and Education Minister Dominic Cardy taking questions.

But as one reporter tried to ask his question near the end of the news conference, he was cut off by an unmistakable sound.

“That is not me,” Tom Bateman, a reporter with the Times & Transcript, quickly replied as the sound continued.

Even Dr. Russell struggled to maintain her composure briefly and appeared to be flushed with embarrassment.

“Everybody please mute your microphones,” Department of Health spokesperson Bruce Macfarlane could be heard saying with a chuckle as he tried to get a handle on the situation.

Fortunately, everyone seemed to take the incident in stride and no one appeared to be peed off as a result.

Video clips have been shared widely on social media, providing some much-needed comic relief at a time when people are dealing with increased anxiety and stress due to the pandemic.

This also teaches a valuable lesson: remember to mute your phone during conference calls — or urine trouble.

You can see Dr. Russell’s reaction in the video below.

Author

  • Tara Clow is a multi-award-winning news anchor and reporter with more than 30 years of experience at radio stations across Canada. She is a graduate of the Radio and TV Arts program at Toronto Metropolitan University and the Humber College radio broadcasting program. She is based in Moncton and covers stories across Canada. Contact Tara at clow.tara@radioabl.ca.

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Moncton, NB
7:48 pm, Apr 10, 2026
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