028 | Respectfully Correcting a Moonwalker on National TV
Every one of us has someone we look up to—someone whose qualities and achievements we could only hope to replicate. We respect these people, so it’s difficult to tell them when they get something wrong. Now, imagine that exact situation except you’re live on TV with millions of people watching and listening to every word you say. That happened to me on April 12, 1981, when the Space Shuttle (STS-1) was scheduled to launch for the very first time.
In this episode, you’ll hear about the time I was asked to correct one of the country’s most prolific astronauts on live TV. I recount being assigned as media support and my thoughts on how a particular TV station’s boss treated me. You’ll get to know what was happening behind the scenes when the STS-1’s launch didn’t go as planned and why I felt some of the statements being said on TV were incorrect or subject to a proper explanation. I also share how I navigated my way through correcting a famous astronaut in a polite—rather than condescending—manner.
"Life is full of unexpected and delicate situations. How we navigate them will affect what doors open and close to us far into the future." - Kathy Sullivan
This week on Kathy Sullivan Explores:
Being assigned as media support to a news station on launch day
The reason the TV station’s boss dismissed me as soon as I got there
Feeling the excitement of launching Americans into space after six long years
Why launching people into space is both exciting and scary
The technical error that canceled the entire rocket launch
Politely correcting a famous astronaut's errors on live television
Spaceship Not Required
I’m Kathy Sullivan, the only person to have walked in space and gone to the deepest point in the ocean.
I’m an explorer, and that doesn’t always have to involve going to some remote or exotic place. It simply requires a commitment to put curiosity into action.
In this podcast, you can explore, reflecting on lessons learned from life so far and from my brilliant and ever-inquisitive guests. We explore together in this very moment from right where you are… spaceship not required.
Welcome to Kathy Sullivan Explores.