hot mic

or hot mike

[ hot mahyk ]

/ ˈhɒt ˈmaɪk /

noun Informal.

a microphone that is actively recording or broadcasting, especially if it captures a comment or conversation that the speaker or speakers believed to be private (often used attributively): The techs should limit the number of hot mics to reduce acoustic feedback. The reporter was suspended after her profanity was caught on a hot mic. Their hot mic scheming confirmed the conspiracy theories.

Words nearby hot mic

hot light, hot line, hot link, hot mess, hot metal, hot mic, hot money, hot number, hot off the press, hot on, hot pack

Origin of hot mic

1930–35; hot (in the sense “actively conducting an electric current”) + mic “microphone”