Overview
- Mascots and fans at multiple major league games—including the Phillies, Diamondbacks and SportsCenter hosts—have recreated the panic-stricken kiss-cam dodge on stadium jumbotrons since Friday.
- Pete DeJoy, Astronomer’s co-founder, assumed interim CEO duties over the weekend while the board continues its formal inquiry and the search for a permanent successor is under way.
- The episode began on July 16 at a Coldplay concert at Gillette Stadium when the kiss cam captured CEO Andy Byron and Chief People Officer Kristin Cabot reacting with visible alarm.
- Following the viral exposure, Astronomer placed Byron and Cabot on administrative leave, launched an internal investigation and accepted Byron’s resignation on July 19.
- The incident highlights Coldplay’s novel use of a stadium-style kiss cam to engage concertgoers and demonstrates the speed of social media in amplifying live-event moments into broad sports-culture memes.