From hilarious viral moments to career-killing incidents to grim moments that dramatized the alienation of the coronavirus pandemic, Zoom has captured some amazing and shocking moments over the last year.
As millions of people settled into working, learning, teaching, and socializing in new ways given coronavirus lockdown orders and social distancing, Zoom and other video-chat programs emerged as a way to converse with others while staying virus-free. Despite the benefits, the newfound usage of the software generated many headlines.
The Jeffrey Toobin incident
In what was perhaps this year’s the best-known incident relating to Zoom, longtime New Yorker staff writer and CNN chief legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin inadvertently exposed himself on camera to his colleagues. The journalist characterized the incident as an “embarrassing mistake.” It was later reported that those on the call included the magazine’s biggest talents and that they watched as Toobin masturbated.
Toobin was fired by the New Yorker weeks after the mishap. CNN has been mum about the incident, although a spokesperson said at the time that the company granted him some “time off while he deals with a personal issue.”
Official resigns after launching cat
A city planner for Vallejo, California, resigned in April after attending a Zoom meeting where he appeared to be intoxicated. In a video from the meeting, Planning Commissioner Chris Platzer holds up his calico cat to the camera and introduces it to the others on the call before swiftly tossing it over his left shoulder. The fearful feline could be heard making a squeaking noise as it soared through the air.
Platzer reportedly appeared to be drinking alcohol during the meeting. “I’m going to call bullshit. Mhm. I’m going to call bullshit on you, little bitches,” Platzer told his colleagues at one point during the virtual meeting. Platzer resigned and apologized for the incident prior to disciplinary action being taken.
Special education teacher gets robbed live on Zoom
In one of the more harrowing virtual incidents of the past year, a special education teacher in Cleveland, Ohio, fended off an armed man who broke into her house and tried to rob her last month. Amanda Zupancic was in an 11 a.m. Zoom meeting with a student and his family at her home when she heard the sound of glass shattering. She soon realized she was not alone.
Zupancic said she noticed a knife-wielding man coming up the stairs who ended up coming in and rifling through her belongings. The quick-thinking teacher then offered the man her car keys, but instead, let out her two large dogs, grabbed a pair of scissors, and chased the intruder down the street as the family of her student called 911. The suspect was later apprehended.
Election committee meeting hacked and shown pornography
The pandemic has seen the rise of so-called “Zoombombing” as more and more people moved important meetings online. An April meeting of the Indiana Election Committee was interrupted when a hacker infiltrated the meeting and showed pornographic images as officials worked to cut the feed.
“Holy moly. Indiana Election Commission meeting had just started on Zoom when someone switched video to them masturbating. My eyes! My eyes!” said Statehouse File editor Mary Beth Schneider over Twitter.
As chair Paul Okeson said “That was a first.”
— Mary Beth Schneider (@marybschneider) April 17, 2020
The first virtual jury trial
What was believed to be the country’s first virtual jury trial got off to an interesting start in May when during jury selection, one potential juror held up the process by walking off-screen to take a personal phone call. The judge in the case was unable to get the potential juror’s attention initially because his headphones were connected to the computer. The man returned to virtual court after the phone call.
“Usually, at this point, I’m sending the bailiff out to tap him on the shoulder,” one judge listening to the case said, noting that sometimes during normal jury selection, potential jurors wander off into the hallway to take phone calls.
ISIS Zoombomb
In another notable incident of Zoombombing, 19-year-old Ibraheem Ahmed al Bayati interrupted a University of Houston online class and allegedly praised the Islamic State group and threatened to bomb the school.
“What does any of this have to do with the fact that UH is about to get bombed in a few days?” Bayati reportedly told the class. He was tracked down by the FBI using his IP address and was arrested and charged in federal court. Bayati later claimed that the intrusion was intended to be a joke.
11-year-old kills himself during Zoom class
In a terrible tragedy, an 11-year-old child died by suicide during a virtual class this month. Authorities said the child shot himself while his camera and microphone were turned off during a virtual class in California. He was rushed to the hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Congressman votes on a boat
A freshman representative from Arizona took some heat in July when he was seen floating on a boat during a videoconference session of the House Transportation Committee. Democratic Rep. Greg Stanton, who earlier appeared in a blazer for the session, was later spotted on a boat in the water when he voted against a resolution.
“There’s no getting around it: I messed up and I’m sorry for it. I participated in the five-hour markup mostly from inside and went outside to watch my kids (while listening in the entire time) shortly before the vote was called,” Stanton said afterward on Twitter.
