Five of the most outrageous hot-mic moments

The golden rule of broadcasting: always assume the mic is live.

While it seems like such a simple concept to follow, it tends to slip the minds of media figures – despite their depths of media training. Inevitably, these embarrassing ordeals often resort to social media roastings and public apologies.

You would expect world leaders to know better and be extra cautious about their choice of words. Unfortunately not.

After Biden blasted Fox News' Peter Doocy as a "stupid son of a b*tch" on Tuesday, it only felt necessary to look back at five of our favourite hot mic blunders.

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Australian news anchor calls Novak Djokovic an "a**hole"

In a leaked clip, Channel 7 presenters Rebecca Maddern and Mike Amor didn't hold back when it came to discussing tennis player Novak Djokovic.

"Novak Djokovic is a lying, sneaky a**hole," Maddern said before laughing. "Like whatever way you look at it. It’s unfortunate that everybody else stuffed up around him."

Amor added: “That’s it… you’ve got a bullsh** f**king excuse and then he fell over his own f**king lies. That’s just what happens right?"

A statement from Craig McPherson, Seven’s Director of News and Public Affairs, said it was a “private conversation” and said they would deal with whoever leaked the clip.

He said: “The illegal recording was of a private conversation between two colleagues.

“It was an underhanded, cowardly act in breach of the Victorian Listening Devices legislation the perpetrator of which will be accordingly dealt with when found.”

Fauci called Republican senator "a moron"

During a hearing of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, Fauci called a Republican senator a “moron” in a hot mic blunder.

Senator Roger Marshall quizzed whether Fauci should have a publicly available financial disclosure form. A confused Fauci noted that such disclosures are public knowledge. "You are getting amazingly wrong information," Fauci said.

Marshall stated his office couldn’t find them and asked where they could be viewed if they were public. Fauci replied: “It is totally accessible to you if you want it”.

Marshall asked: “To the public, is it accessible to the public?”

“To the public,” a frustrated Fauci confirmed, to which Marshall responded: “Great, we look forward to viewing it.”

Fauci then uttered: “What a moron”, before adding: “Jesus Christ”.

Barack Obama and Nicolas Sarkozy trash talk Benjamin Netanyahu

Former President Barack Obama and his then French counterpart, Nicolas Sarkozy, found themselves in hot water back in November 2011.

At the G20 summit, the pair were overheard gossiping about Israeli's then-Prime-Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Sarkozy told Obama, "I can't stand him. He's a liar," according to French website Arret sur Images.

Obama reportedly responded: "You're tired of him; what about me? I have to deal with him every day."

Trump caught on hot mic before announcing unprecedented travel ban over coronavirus

An ill-prepared Trump was awkwardly caught on a hot mic moments before announcing a ban on all travel from Europe.

In March 2020, former President Donald Trump was heard saying "oh f**k" before asking for "white stuff" to fix a "pen mark."

"Oh, f**k — Uh oh, I got a pen mark," he said before his Oval Office address to the US. "Anybody have the white stuff ... Do you see it? Which side is it on?"

Gordon Brown called Rochdale pensioner a "ridiculous bigoted woman"

Just as people thought Gordon Brown's 2010 campaign couldn't get any worse, he put his foot in it by slamming a pensioner as a "ridiculous, bigoted woman."

A week before the election, Brown stopped to chat with a voter in Rochdale.

She criticised Brown, saying she was ashamed to admit her political allegiance to the Labour Party.

Brown kept up a polite appearance while the cameras were rolling, but as soon as he stepped away, he said: "That was a disaster. They should never have put me with that woman. ... Ridiculous ... bigoted woman."

He later apologised and went on to lose the election.

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