Guy Goma reflects on accidental BBC interview after 20 years

4 articles · Updated · NPR · May 9

NPR's Elissa Nadworny spoke to Goma this week about the live BBC mix-up, when he arrived for an IT job interview and was mistakenly put on air.
The unexpected appearance became a viral sensation, turning Goma into an enduring symbol of on-air mishaps and internet-era media fame.
The anniversary revisit highlights how a brief broadcasting error at the BBC became one of the most memorable accidental interviews in television news.

Twenty years after his mistaken BBC interview, what is the lasting legacy of the internet's original 'Wrong Guy'?

Could a live TV blunder like Guy Goma's happen today, and how would the social media fallout differ from 2006?