Singer Rihanna performing in 2012. Photo: Simone Joyner/Getty Images

Pop singer Rihanna is an all-time best-selling artist, having shifted more than 200 million records in her short career.

In the last couple of years, Forbes has ranked the now 27-year-old in its top 5 most powerful celebrities and Time put her in its 100 Most Influential People in the World.

So when she’s getting ready to release her first album in three years, anticipation levels are pretty high and the race to be the first to tell everyone about it is pretty intense.

Which brings us to Yahoo, run by another power woman, Marissa Mayer.

Today, in a world first, Yahoo published its review of Rihanna’s 8th album Anti, but there was one big problem. It was written by someone who hadn’t heard it and actually has no idea what’s on it, although apparently the album “pushes the edge”.

How do we know?

Because it’s written in what the media industry calls a “shell” – the sort of thing politicians and marketers use with [INSERT NAME HERE] in it to personalise a generic message.

That’s why it starts:

Anti is finally here. Barbadian powerhouse pop start Rihanna dropped her long-awaited album on [FRIDAY], featuring some of the hottest names in the music industry, including [FEATURED ARTISTS].

Here’s a screenshot of the published “review” on Yahoo.

Yep, all that preparation came unstuck when someone hit the wrong button too early.

It happens to the best.

A few weeks ago, The Washington Post inadvertently published this incomplete “shell” prepared if US vice president Joe Biden announced plans to run for the top job.

The mortified reporter took to Twitter to apologise for the “technical glitch”.

It happened when editors were embedding video file. It carries my byline. I regret that it was published accidentally. Deep apologies. (2/2) — Paul Kane (@pkcapitol) October 20, 2015

And Australian Masterchef fans will remember six years ago when The Daily Telegraph accidentally hit the wrong button and Poh “won” the first series – ultimately taken out by Julie Goodwin.



* Credit to the eagle-eye team at Junkee’s Faster Louder for spotting it firstand taking the screenshot for posterity.



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