Just call him “Spill Mattingly.”
Phil Mattingly, CNN’s chief White House correspondent who filled in for Kaitlan Collins on Thursday as co-host alongside Poppy Harlow on “CNN This Morning,” was given a good old-fashioned ribbing live on the air after he spilled his coffee.
Mattingly sheepishly had to explain himself after he inadvertently sent his cup of joe hurtling toward the floor as he provided an unwelcome wakeup call during the 6 a.m. hour.
Harlow and the show’s producers teased Mattingly by playing the hit 2009 song “Drop It Like It’s Hot” by Snoop Dogg and Pharrell Williams.
“I know exactly where this is going,” an embarrassed Mattingly told Harlow as the song played in the background.
The incident occurred as Harlow and Mattingly were hosting a panel that discussed Wednesday night’s controversial town hall with former President Donald Trump, which was moderated by Collins.
The lighthearted moment was a welcome respite from the fierce criticism the network faces from staffers and other prominent media personalities.
Harlow noted that Mattingly has several titles including “best husband who takes his wife to Beyonce,” “chief White House correspondent,” and “dad.”
“But today he earned himself a new title — Spill Mattingly,” Harlow joked.
“Normally, coffee is supposed to wake us up during our early mornings,” the co-anchor said.
“This time, in our 6 a.m. hour, coffee was the enemy.”
CNN then aired a clip of Mattingly’s coffee being knocked to the ground.
“Did you just spill your coffee?” Harlow asked Mattingly, who confessed to the deed after trying to make it seem as if he ignored what had happened.
“I always think that’s going to happen to me,” she said.
“As somebody who’s not usually at a desk, I was like ‘How am I going to play this?’” Mattingly said.
“I decided to ignore it, and then you called me out on it,” Mattingly told Harlow, who laughed.
“So I’m just going to sit here and wear it for a minute,” he said.
Harlow and Mattingly then watched a replay of the spilled coffee in which a camera zoomed in on the cup as it splashed to the floor.
“This is NFL-level instant replay,” Mattingly said.
An embarrassed Mattingly said that his pants “sufficiently” dried up and that there were no “standing segments” left to do.
The segment ended with a replay of the incident was spliced with the theme to HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”
[Written in collaboration with other media outlets with information from the following sources]
