TV reporter accidentally turns mask filter on before going live in NC, video shows

Live reporting is always risky, but the possibility of accidentally switching on a Facebook Live mask filter is definitely something new.

That’s exactly what happened Thursday to North Carolina journalist Justin Hinton, and a video shared by WLOS shows it was every bit as goofy as it sounds.

Hinton, who was talking about snow near Asheville, is seen in the minute-long video wearing one bizarre disguise after another, including a jet pilot helmet, a fox mask and a wizard’s pointed hat and beard.

At no point does he acknowledge the masks, instead continuing to talk in all seriousness about “the first legitimate snowfall we’ve seen this season” in Madison County.

He was still reporting when viewers started posting comments on Facebook about the masks, and he can be heard in a WLOS Facebook post asking a co-worker: “Wait ... did I have a weird face?”

The video has since been watched nearly 125,000 times, and shared 1,300 times, leading the San Diego native to offer an explanation on his Facebook page:

“Right before going live on Facebook on the WLOS ABC 13 station account to talk about snow, I somehow activated a filter generator,” Hinton posted.

“The photog I was working with said something about the screen having weird faces. He didn’t elaborate, so I said it would probably go away. Needless to say, it did not go away. I didn’t realize it until I stepped off camera and saw the comments where people were talking about the faces.”

He concluded by saying: “If you can’t laugh at yourself, what’s the point of laughter?”

Comments on his post have included some people calling him “the weather wizard” and others who thought the station had done the whole thing “on purpose.”

“Actually you guys should do this a lot more,” posted Mike Kaufman on Hinton’s Facebook page.

This story was originally published February 24, 2020 at 1:49 PM.