A live CNN discussion on the U.S. economy was humorously interrupted when economist Justin Wolfers accidentally swallowed a fly during an interview.

The incident occurred on Saturday afternoon while Wolfers, a professor at the University of Michigan, was speaking with CNN host Omar Jimenez about recent economic news, including the Bureau of Labor Statistics' jobs report and Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh.

Wolfers was offering a perspective on the 23,000 jobs lost in July, stating, "The good news is the U.S. labor market, roughly speaking, has been The Little Engine That Could. It’s not earning an A+ in anyone’s book, but it does seem remarkably resilient so far."

Mid-sentence, he began to cough and his eyes widened as he struggled with the unexpected pest. Jimenez continued speaking briefly, acknowledging the professor's discomfort by saying, "C's get degrees, though. I don't know if that's your policy in your class, but sometimes you do what you need to."

After a few moments, Wolfers addressed the situation directly, telling Jimenez, "Mate, I just swallowed a fly on live television!"

Jimenez responded with laughter, explaining he had been trying to allow Wolfers time to recover. Wolfers, who is Australian, humorously mimed grabbing and eating a fly, adding, "Aussies love eating flies."

He then masterfully wove the mishap into his economic analysis. "It might actually be a metaphor, because the biggest thing going on at the Fed is Kevin Warsh feels like I do right now," Wolfers quipped. "Kevin Warsh doesn't feel like talking about what's going on, and it makes both of us a little harder to understand, and a little harder to interpret."

He concluded the analogy by saying, "So you could think about Kevin as having swallowed the fly as well. I might swallow a horse; that will get the fly."

Following the broadcast, Wolfers posted about the event on X. "A fly just zipped into my mouth while gabbing on CNN. Next question was about the Fed, so I did what Kevin Warsh won't—I swallowed hard and kept talking. I figure folks deserve some clarity about the economy," he wrote. He added a postscript: "The fly is dead. And I'm no longer a vegetarian."