This is a common situation and it is one of the occurrences where you would laugh at the situation. However, would you still be able to laugh if such an occasion happens to be in a serious event, say, a court proceeding?
Well, that happens to a lawyer in Texas, United States when he has appeared as a ‘cat’ on Zoom virtual conference, due to a filter.
Last few days, a video clip of a virtual court proceeding has gone viral after a lawyer came out as a cat because of a filter. In the 42-second clip, the lawyer told the judges that he was not aware of how to turn the filter off and was asking for his assistant’s help.
He said to the other participants, “I’m here live. I’m not a cat.” to which the judge responded, “I can see that.” There are no sensitive issues that arise, just a pure authentic humorous moment for a short while.
The video has received over 1.4 million views on YouTube since it was uploaded on Feb 9.
Judge Roy Ferguson of the 394th Judicial District of Texas shared on Twitter that the video was uploaded as a remembrance for an important tip for any other virtual conferencing platform that you must check your camera filters first.
Ferguson also claimed that everyone in the conference handled the incident with dignity and the lawyer resembled a graceful appearance.
Ferguson also mentioned that the video has a risk because any court proceedings recording are prohibited and offenders may face a US$500 (RM2,000) fine and a jail term of 180 days but the video was released, not more than for educational purposes.
Ferguson also tweeted that the video shouldn’t be used to mock the lawyers but to exemplify the legal community’s dedication to the cause of justice.
Now the tips. Before you join any video calls on Zoom specifically, click Settings at the top right corner under your username and select ‘Background & Filters’. Then, click on ‘Video Filters’ and pick None.
In the case of you are already in the video call, click the Camera icon at the bottom for Settings, then pick “Choose Video Filter” and a window for “Background & Filters” will appear and you can click None to turn off the filter. This is for browser’s users only.
As for the mobile app, tap More on the menu bar, then Tap “Background and Filters” and select the Filters tab to check if a filter is active.
This situation is very likely to happen to any of us at any time. Usually when it happens, regardless of the position we hold, it will leave us with panic and make us act in a spontaneous reaction. Hopefully with the tips given, it will at least breathe out the ease in your heart in case such situations arise.
