Reporter Promotes Condom Use — “It Helps Protect Your Gear”
NBC2’s Kyla Galer was in Fort Myers, Florida reporting on Hurricane Ian’s landfall when viewers became distracted by the latex covering on her microphone.
“NBC 2 practicing safe microphone reporting during hurricane Ian,” tweeted one viewer.
“@NBCNewsNow really got this woman out here holding a mic wrapped in a condom up to her face,” chimed in another.
Galer quickly defended the practice on her Instagram Stories.
“A lot of people are asking what is on my microphone,” she said.
“It is what you think it is. It’s a condom. It helps protect the gear. You can’t get these mics wet. There’s a lot of wind and a lot of rain, so we gotta do what we gotta do and that is put a condom on the microphone.”
Galer’s colleague, ABC7’s Jeff Butera, then tweeted his own picture of Galer’s microphone up close along with the caption, “WE PRACTICE SAFE HURRICANE REPORTING.”
“Yes, it’s a condom,” he continued.
“Nothing better to waterproof a microphone. My Waterman Broadcasting colleague @kylagaler has been fielding lots of questions, haha. Moment of levity in this nasty storm…#HurricaneIan.”
The levity comes amid worsening conditions on Florida’s west coast, as Hurricane Ian rages with record-breaking storm surges and winds over 100 mph.