The Curious Case of Roger Millions

If you can remember all the way back to yesterday, you’ll remember that Roger Millions, a reporter for Rogers SportsNet in Canada Land, had a verbal snafu while on the air. Today, Tim Wharnsby of the Globe and Mail is on the case and we’ve got a clearer picture of what exactly went down. Isn’t that a little meta? A reporter investigating another reporter. Maybe that’s one way to keep newspapers going — have them start covering each other. If anything, it would be entertaining. 

But back to the Curious Case of Roger Millions. Wharnsby is reporting that it’s not really even Millions’ fault that his profanity ever made it to air. Apparently, SportsNet aired Millions’ segment from a tape recorded earlier in the day. So the clip they aired wasn’t a live report from Millions and it was, obviously, the wrong clip. Or maybe it was the right one and someone at SportsNet has it out for Roger. Either way, things are probably getting interesting inside the offices of SportsNet. 

Isn’t this all something that, I don’t know, probably happens on a daily basis? I imagine that Millions isn’t nearly the only reporter who has ever cursed after flubbing a taping (I, for one, curse like a sailor anytime I type a post and use the wrong form of ‘there’). It’s just that he was the unlucky one who had the curse make it to air.

The faux pas sent shock waves through the all-sports network yesterday, prompting an internal memo from executive producer Mike English. English’s message was that Millions was being humiliated worldwide on YouTube.com and other Internet sites because shortcuts were taken by others to get his report on the air.

OK, I think English is a little confused here. Millions isn’t being humiliated by anyone. He’s being celebrated because he singlehandedly created one of the funniest YouTube clips of the year. Shouldn’t he be getting a bonus for that or something?

But, if we keep going, there’s got to be a money quote in this article somewhere… Wait for it… Wait for it…

Some of the Flames players joked with him about the incident, but they also demonstrated support for him. “Hey, you’re human,” said Calgary forward Todd Bertuzzi, who has endured his share of controversy throughout his NHL career.

There it is. Cue the awkward silence.