Unexpected Video Played During Broadcast... Flustered Announcer Apologizes, "It Played by Mistake"

A broadcasting accident occurred on a Japanese morning entertainment program when an unexpected image of North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un was aired. The program is similar to Korea's 'Achim Madang,' and viewers reacted with surprise, saying, "I thought something had happened."

Japanese TBS morning program Rabbit host Tamura Mako
Photo by Tamura Mako Instagram

On the 1st, during the morning program 'Rabbit!' (Love it!) on Japan's TBS, footage of North Korea's military parade and Chairman Kim watching it was broadcast for about 8 seconds. This scene aired after a commercial break and was not a scheduled video but a broadcasting accident. Announcer Tamura Mako, who was hosting the show, explained and apologized, saying, "The video was prepared for emergency use but was played by mistake."

The program is a morning information variety show similar to Korea's 'Achim Madang,' mainly featuring comedians and idol singers. When the North Korean military parade footage suddenly appeared on such a program, local viewers were reportedly shocked. Those who saw the video said, "It's so scary," "I thought something had happened," and "I thought we were hacked by North Korea," expressing relief afterward.

Scenes from the North Korean military parade broadcasted on June 1 by Japan's TBS

Meanwhile, in Japan, there was a major confusion when an evacuation alert was issued anticipating that a North Korean missile might fall on Japanese territory or territorial waters, only to later correct it as a false alarm.

Last April, an alert was issued that a North Korean missile would fall near Hokkaido, Japan, causing the entire Japanese archipelago to be on edge. Instead of the morning drama airing at the time, a live evacuation order was broadcast, and NHK, which was delivering the weather forecast, immediately switched to breaking news mode to relay the alert. Citizens in Hokkaido were anxious due to the sudden evacuation alert during their commute, and scenes of people temporarily evacuating were captured by broadcast cameras. However, 20 minutes later, the Japanese government corrected the alert as a false alarm, drawing criticism for causing confusion with inaccurate warnings.