Today show reporter Danika Mason has fronted up with an on-air apology after her Winter Olympics live crosses from Italy went viral for all the wrong – and slightly wobbly – reasons.
Appearing on the breakfast program on Thursday morning, the 34-year-old Channel Nine sports reporter wrapped up a live cross from Livigno with a candid confession: she’d had a drink the night before, and it showed.
“And guys, just before we do go, I just want to take a moment, if that’s okay, just to apologise,” Mason said, before ticking off the environmental hit list that conspired against her professionalism: freezing temperatures, high altitude, no dinner, and yes, a drink.
“I totally misjudged a situation. I shouldn’t have had a drink… it’s cold, we’ve got altitude, and not having had dinner probably didn’t help,” she admitted. “I want to take full responsibility. It’s not the standard that I set for myself.”
Mason also thanked viewers who checked in to make sure she was okay, adding she was “probably just a little bit embarrassed” – a feeling many Australians are familiar with after reviewing their own late-night decisions in the cold light of morning.
The apology followed a storm of social media chatter after Wednesday’s crosses, which featured Mason battling a snowstorm, rambling briefly about coffee prices, making snow angels and responding blankly when Karl Stefanovic compared her to a frozen iguana.
“I’m not sure about the iguanas? Where are we going with that one?” she said, before valiantly attempting to steer things back to sport.
Viewers quickly noticed the slurred words and tangled sentences, while co-hosts Karl Stefanovic and Jayne Azzopardi suggested the icy conditions were to blame.
“There is such a cold wind, you can’t actually move your lips,” Stefanovic offered, with the confidence of a man who has never let a famous Logies hangover define him.
Social media, however, had its own diagnosis. Comments ranged from polite concern (I think Danika is a bit under the weather”) to outright delight, with one viewer declaring it “the most entertaining sports news for the year so far”. The reaction was so enthusiastic that Nine eventually limited comments on its post.
Back on Thursday morning, Stefanovic waved off the whole saga with mock confusion. “I don’t even know what you’re talking about,” he said. “You’re the best, Danika. Don’t worry about it. Let’s move on.”
Behind the scenes, TV insiders say Nine is now reviewing how the control room allowed the crosses to continue over several hours – though for many viewers, Mason’s frosty freestyle reporting was a rare reminder that even Olympic broadcasts can occasionally slip on the ice.
Images: Today show
