NewsNation drew backlash from viewers and on social media for displaying a ticking “oxygen countdown” during its coverage of the Titan submersible that went missing in the Atlantic Ocean on Sunday.
The counter showed the estimated time left until the oxygen ran out in the missing underwater craft. The OceanGate Expeditions vessel, on a tour to view the wreckage of the Titanic, held five people who were all presumed dead on Thursday after debris from the submersible was discovered.
The vessel was estimated to have 70 to 96 hours worth of oxygen when it went missing, leaving a deadline of roughly 7:10 a.m. EDT Thursday for rescuers to possibly find them alive.
NewsNation stood by the decision to air the countdown clock.
“The oxygen levels on the Titan submersible have always been an essential and important part of this story. Multiple media outlets have published or aired stories tracking the remaining oxygen on the Titan as the search continued. In fact, it would be irresponsible not to include this information in the story of the rescue effort,” a NewsNation spokesperson told HuffPost on Thursday.
Several Twitter users criticized the countdown as insensitive.
“Is this new years eve? what’s with the countdown?” one Twitter user tweeted.
“How insensitive having a countdown clock for oxygen…” another wrote.
There were multiple possible scenarios besides oxygen loss that could render the NewsNation countdown irrelevant. Such instances included the implosion of Titan upon descent, which is now believed to have been the case. Other scenarios that had been considered included a chance that the vessel had become trapped in the Titanic wreckage or that it had resurfaced and merely needed to be recovered, Insider reported. NewsNation’s Ashleigh Banfield reported that a sea creature could have attacked the craft.
OceanGate Expeditions was taking four passengers and the pilot to the Titanic crash site at a reported cost of $250,000 per passenger. The expedition had occurred only a few times before, and it required passengers to sign an extensive waiver. In the past, the submersible had failed safety tests.
During Sunday’s trip, the 22-foot vessel went off the grid, initiating an enormous search operation to scour the ocean near the Titanic wreckage site, which is about 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada.
The passengers — Hamish Harding, a British billionaire; Paul-Henri Nargeolet, a Titanic explorer; and Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son, Suleman — and the pilot, OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, were presumed dead on Thursday after debris was found near the sunken Titanic.
The U.S. Coast Guard said it will continue searching for information about the “catastrophic implosion” but added that the passengers’ remains are not likely to be found.
“In consultation with experts in the unified command, the debris is consistent with the catastrophic loss of the pressure chamber,” Coast Guard Rear Adm. John Mauger said at a news conference Thursday. “Upon this determination, we immediately notified the families.”
“These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world’s oceans. Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time,” OceanGate said in a statement. “We grieve the loss of life and joy they brought to everyone they knew.”
