King Charles was in the middle of a visit to Northern Ireland when people in another part of his realm were told, wrongly, that he had died. On a sunny May morning, the audience of Radio Caroline heard the music stop and a sombre announcement intone that Charles III was no more. The mistake was realised fairly quickly, an apology was issued and much confirmation that The King was still alive and well was given through the day. It wasn’t enough to stop the story going viral, though. And the protocols for preparing for the death of the Monarch explain why this mistake happened so readily.
Every broadcaster in the country has a procedure in place for dealing with the moment that the Monarch dies. In this case, a computer glitch is believed to have started the protocol running. Radio Caroline’s audience was enjoying ‘What’s Up?’ by 4 Non Blondes when the music stopped, indicating something was, indeed, up.
Instead of the 1990s hit, listeners heard a solemn voice announce that The King had died. This was followed by the National Anthem and a full 15 minutes of silence before someone got wind of the incorrect announcement and activated The King Is Not Dead proceedings. In this case, multiple references to Charles III being very much alive and well.
However, the incident has highlighted one of the downsides of being Monarch. Everyone is ready for your death, from the moment you become king or queen. On September 8 2022, broadcasters around the world were on standby for the death of Queen Elizabeth II after Buckingham Palace issued a statement saying her doctors were concerned for her health. In this instance, media was waiting for the official announcement which, as that afternoon wore on, seemed increasingly likely to come. As soon as Buckingham Palace announced the death of Elizabeth II, in a short statement at 6.30pm, the long planned broadcasts covering her death started to take over the airwaves.
However, broadcasters and publishers have to be ready for unexpected announcements, too. And that is why emergency protocols are in place. They differ from outlet to outlet but anyone with an audience or readership has a plan in place to announce major, breaking news such as the death of a Monarch. Given the solemnity of the occasion, and the fact that the UK will experience an automatic change in Head of State, it’s formalised and practised.
Usually, an announcement is made that normal broadcasting is interrupted and a short statement confirming that the Palace has announced the death follows. The National Anthem is then played and regular programming disappears as reporting turns to the news of a death.
And that’s easy to follow when the death is anticipated. But when it’s not expected, broadcasters have to be ready to move instantly. When Diana, Princess of Wales died in August 1997, media had to quickly turn to their emergency protocols. Once on air, they were waiting for confirmed sources to tell them the latest as Diana was treated in hospital. The announcement of her death, in the early hours of August 31 following a car crash, was a shock and triggered the implementation of more emergency broadcasting protocols.
In this instance, all was resolved very quickly. But it was also a reminder in an age where media is growing all the time, of the perils that face established broadcasters and publishers. A big news story like this has to be right and if it’s not, plenty will tell you about it afterwards. In this instance, it was a computer glitch that caused the trouble. Something triggered the automatic playing of the protocol around the death of a Monarch and no doubt those in charge of Radio Caroline immediately made sure it could never happen again.
But it’s a reminder, too that when social media is broadcasting, sharing and publishing all the time, a rumour can take hold very quickly. And that’s something all broadcasters and publishers have to be aware of when it comes to this protocol.
