For a moment over the weekend, it appeared as though the Facebook page of WIBW in Topeka, KS had been hacked. Out of nowhere, a series of messages were posted on the CBS-affiliate’s page that criticized Topeka and praised the city’s interstate rival, Manhattan.
“We’re pretty sure our Facebook pages have been hacked,” WIBW reporter Suzie Gilbert announced in a post on Saturday. “We’re working on it!”
And then the station quickly discovered the person behind the “hack”: general manager Jim Ogle.
It turns out that Ogle, who was traveling to Manhattan for a party to celebrate additions to the city’s zoo, had mistakenly posted on the WIBW Facebook page when he thought that he was posting on his personal account.
“We got to the bottom if it!” Gilbert wrote in a follow-up post. “The posts were from our GM Jim Ogle. They were intended to be viewed privately. The posts do not necessarily reflect the opinions of WIBW-TV staff. Sorry for the confusion!”
WIBW has since deleted Ogle’s posts but it appears that they are still up on his personal Facebook page.
The past couple of weeks have been rough for WIBW. In May, two employees were stabbed by a disgruntled man who forced his way into the station’s headquarters.