I was working for a large retail chain that has since gone out of business. Corporate was extremely skiddish about the verdict. We had had a store burned and looted in LA during the Rodney King Riots and they feared a repeat of that event.
We were getting memos for weeks in advance that when the verdict was going to be announced, “tune all of the TV’s in the electronics department to a pre-recorded movie and DO NOT have any live TV or radio coverage of the verdict on in the store!”
We followed those to the letter. A couple of us sat back in the lounge and watched the verdict being read.
An assistant manager I was working with then went to the office, grabbed the intercom mike, and announced to the entire store “O.J. Simpson has been found not guilty. The jury gave its vedict and he is not guilty!”
I sat there turning purple with my jaw hitting the floor. After the weeks of warnings I thought we were all getting canned.
Need not have worried. Only 2 customers in the store. It seems everyone else in town was at home watching the verdict too.
“An assistant manager I was working with then went to the office, grabbed the intercom mike, and announced to the entire store “O.J. Simpson has been found not guilty. The jury gave its vedict and he is not guilty!”
No wonder they’re out of business if this guy/gal was in management.
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