Radio Times spoils The Apprentice result after Sports Personality of the Year delays announcement
Radio Times on Sunday evening perfectly demonstrated the perils of pre-scheduling content on Twitter - by spoiling the results of the BBC’s The Apprentice.
The gaffe occurred after the BBC’s live Sports Personality of the Year broadcast overshot its initial time slot on BBC One, naturally pushing back the announcement that Sir Alan Sugar, after several weeks of fierce competition between candidates, was to invest in a plumbing business.
As the mogul was deliberating a winner, the RT announced the results five minutes before they were revealed on live TV.
Joseph Valente wins #TheApprentice: "I never had any doubts" https://t.co/uCMBwr5xHi pic.twitter.com/tvUB8Q8ZF9
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— Radio Times (@RadioTimes) December 20, 2015
In the age of multi-screen viewing, the result was spoiled for a great number of viewers, many of whom complained to the publication directly.
The incident sparked debate over whether TV viewers should expect to have such announcements spoiler if they are browsing Twitter in parallel with a live broadcast.