When Martin Tasker said he had to “do that Jewish woman,” it didn’t mean what might think. The sailing commentator in New Zealand has apologised for his embarrassing gaffe when he was heard in what others might perceive as a sexual innuendo during a live broadcast.

The One NEWS yachting correspondent was covering the America’s Cup in San Francisco for TVNZ with colleague Peter Lester. They were chatting on the live stream for minutes about a variety of topics, and were unaware that their microphone was still on.

The yachting reporter was then heard saying, “I feel like a pint of Guinness tonight. Should we cycle back and go to that bar? I’ve got to do that Jewish woman at some stage.”

That “Jewish woman” was no other than Israeli journalist Shimrit Berman, who had approached Tasker for an interview.

Some people might have been shocked at Tasker’s comment, thinking that he was planning a sexual tryst with the journalist. However, Berman told New Zealand Herald that he was referring to their interview.

Tasker, for his part, has apologised for his remarks, saying, “I very much regret the concern my remark has caused. I had no intention of offending anyone.”

TVNZ spokeswoman Megan Richards explained that although there was nothing inappropriate about what he meant, Tasker understood that in the context of the conversation, it could have been misinterpreted.

While many viewers accepted the explanation, they were still baffled as to why no one had bothered to tell Tasker and Lester about their turned on microphone when they were “talking about nothing” for around ten minutes.

Martin Tasker in a non-embarrassing reporting duty for One NEWS:

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