The Rev. Billy Graham was admitted to Mission Hospital last week, and he remains there as he gets checked out for possible pneumonia. Over the weekend, Charlotte TV station WBTV reported Graham was dead. From the Charlotte Observer:
WBTV (Channel 3) apologized Saturday to the Rev. Billy Graham after the station erroneously reported the evangelist’s death.
Around 6:30 a.m. Saturday, a producer and director in the control room saw what they thought was a bulletin on the CBS network feed to its affiliates announcing Graham’s death, said Dennis Milligan, WBTV’s news director. Kristen Miranda, anchoring the newscast, was told by the show’s producer through her earpiece to announce the news, which she did.
Afterward, WBTV called Mission Hospital in Asheville, where Graham, 93, is recovering from pneumonia, and learned he was not dead. Within 10 minutes of the original report, WBTV made an on-air correction.
Ouch.