At the close of a Monday evening forum between Maine’s Second Congressional District candidates Congressman Jared Golden (D) and State Rep. Austin Theriault (R-Fort Kent) hosted by NBC-affiliate News Center Maine, the news station abruptly cut off Theriault’s closing statement for a commercial break — a blunder the station attributed to an error in their computer system.
Monday’s candidate forum marked the second time Golden and Theriault have taken the stage together to go head-to-head on policy issues before the November election, after a debate hosted by WGME last week.
[WATCH: Highlights from Golden v. Theriault ME-CD2 Debate…]
Throughout the candidate forum the two candidates sparred on a wide array of issues, including the economy and budgetary policy, Maine’s housing crisis, energy policy, abortion and gun control.
Golden played defense on his support of President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, a massive spending package that allocated hundreds of billions of dollars to “green energy” and climate change initiatives, and which has been used as key line of attack against the three-term incumbent by his Republican opponent.
[RELATED: Golden, Pingree Steered $500,000 from “Inflation Reduction Act” to Democratic Activists…]
Theriault reiterated claims that Golden “flip-flopped” on the Second Amendment due to Golden’s reversal on gun control following the Oct. 25, 2023 mass shooting in Lewiston, after which Golden announced that he would support a ban on so-called assault rifles.
On the issue of abortion, Golden stated that he is “100 percent pro-choice” and supports legislation that would codify the standards of Roe v. Wade into law, and pushed Theriault to answer what sort of federal legislation he would support.
Theriault rebutted Golden by saying that while he is pro-life, he would not support a federal ban on abortion, saying the issue is not “one size fits all” and should be left up to the states.
When it came time for the two candidates to offer their one-minute closing statements, the News Center Maine moderator prompted Golden to go first, in accordance with a coin flip.
While Golden was able to complete his closing statement in full, Theriault’s statement was cut off after about 30 seconds by a promotional video for News Center Maine itself, in what the station described as a “technical glitch.”
In an editor’s note posted at the top of their article on the candidate forum, the station claimed that the abrupt commercial break was caused by an error in their computer system.
“If you watched it live, you know Theriault’s closing statement was cut off by a commercial break. It was caused by a timing error in our computer system, for which we take full responsibility. It’s an error we want to correct right now,” the editor’s note reads.
In a post to X just minutes after the conclusion of the forum, Theriault said that his closing statement “got cut off,” and again referred to his campaign’s common refrain of calling Golden a “flip-flopper.”
The video of the candidate forum uploaded by News Center Maine to their streaming platform and YouTube channel include the full closing statement segment of the discussion.
Despite the “technical glitch,” the Theriault campaign quickly released a statement claiming victory in the forum.
“Tonight, Jared Golden continued to flip-flop his way through this debate and further entrench himself as the Washington politician who cares more about winning re-election than the people he serves,” said Theriault campaign spokesperson Preya Samsundar.
“Austin’s message of putting people over politics continues to resonate with voters across the district and that’s why they’re ready to entrust him to bring more balance and less extremism to Washington,” Samsundar said.
In response to questions from the Maine Wire, Newscenter Maine said they apologized immediately to Theriault’s campaign for the error — which they said was caused by a North Carolina-based automation computer.
Additionally, the network re-aired both closing statements in subsequent segments.
“[W]e re-aired the full closing statements again with a brief explanation at the top of our 11pm Newscast last night, and again today at the top of the 4:30am, 5am, 6am, noon, 4pm, 5pm and 6pm newscasts,” said Mike Redding from Newscenter.
“We also immediately posted entire closing statements on our social media platforms with an explanation. We plan to re-air the debate in its entirety this Saturday, October 12, 9-10am,” Redding said.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="31543 https://www.themainewire.com/?p=31543">24 Comments
If WLBZ News Center Maine wasn’t in bed with the Nature Conservancy and the Climate alarmists, I’d be more willing to accept “technical glitch”
Fake news!
Our local media are nothing but a propaganda machine for Dems and they ignore news that would expose the damage going on in Maine.
Thankfully we have Maine Wire.
Who cares if his ass wipin’ statement got cut, anyone can tell theriault has a tiny pee pee and everybody knows guys with tiny ones make bad leaders. That’s the kind of guy who opens a nightclub with false.walls in the restrooms that conceal peepers and cameras. He can’t even dress himself, lack of.tie.with blazer means can’t tie a tie which means can’t watch another man tie a tie and duplicate the movements which means tiny penis every time haz haz haz haz haz he has such a tiny one that even one.of the fellows didn’t feel badly for him and tie it for him haz haz haz haz haz looks like the guy in the hellraiser3 haz haz haz haz haz . . . . .or a manager of a blockbuster video rental shop haz haz haz haz haz congress? haz haz haz haz haz
How convenient!!! News Center Maine is a communist propaganda machine just like the other 2 channels and they all will always has be that way. Those people have not had an original thought or act of journalism in their entire existence.
Bull$#!+ Bleeping liars. Funny how that never, NEVER happens to a socialist demoKKKrat moonbat. But that’s okay. WLBZ “reporters” sometimes interview random people and one day that “reporter” is going to get the dog snot kicked out of him/her just because of who their employer is.
AND NOBOBY IS GOING TO GIVE A FLYING RATS TAIL.
And, Comrade Kamala did a great job securing the border. NBC (as well as CBS, ABC, CNN and MSNBC) or its affiliates can’t be trusted.
File a lawsuit. This is election interference and a crime.
Country Girl , you need to contact your doctor as soon as possible .
Your seizure medicine obviously isn’t working . You need serious help
That is it BLAME the computer, not a human.
And I should you to report the news fairly.
Has anyone ever seen this “error” happen in the other direction? When the Dem ruling party is speaking? I can’t recall.
what is it with Golden and the jeans, flannel shirt and vest? Does he think that makes him ‘one of the people”? He is a fake, phony and fraud how CD2 can keep re-electing this Communist is beyond me.
Always amazes me how these computer glitches, phone records disappearing and lost ballots only happen to Republican candidates.All the local TV stations are nothing but state run news.
By the way Country Girl #1 is a Transgender. Who still has a Pee Pee
Why is it these “errors” only occur in one direction?
I have read that George Soros’s funded and controlled minions now own most of the tv and press outlets in Maine. That could explain this “error”. So far as I know, his billions have not yet enabled him to buy The Maine Wire.
News Center Maine has some sort of marching orders to have at least one story each day about climate change or the homeless/immigrant plight. The brainwashing is fairly obvious.
how convenient.
Country Girl is Jared Goldens wife.
Connect the similarities/dots…Jared Golden-plaid shirt, jeans, vest/husband of countrygirl #1…Tampon Tim Walz- plaid shirt, jeans, vest. husband of woman who left the windows open so she could smell Minneapolis burn. Anyone else see this connection?
Golden looks like a tool in that plaid shirt and vest.
Doesn’t matter, Maine is finished with the lying POS Golden!
He’s part of the Harris/Biden regime, an imarure Socialist Democrat swamp creature!
His entire campaign has been nothing but fear mongering and lies to cover his pathetic incompetence and Biden brown-nosing.
Golden never has represented his constituents! If not for the Democrat’s RCV scam, he never would have been elected!
It’s time the Second District had a representative that shares our values, not an immature feckless Socialist kissass who is only out to suck up to DC Democrats.
District 1 has that!
Country Girl #1 needs to get back on her meds. Maybe at a higher dose!
Her lobotomy didn’t take.
Someone flipped the switch, “for the cause.”
Suck shit out my ass, billy boy – he’ll lose the election due to that one comment.
Call a doctor? That sposta be funny? How about I bring a republican-killing tropical cyclone up here, and under the cover of it me an my county girls will put on FEMA vests and 5240.01 you and everyone who thinks like you? How about that?
The republican party will end with the defeat of donald.trump. Should’ve happened after 9/11