Based on what the experts they hired told them this is example of "Telling only part of the story, showing bias, spinning things".

The experts NBC hired to conduct the demonstration insisted that the rockets wouldn't matter unless fuel spilled. They also told them that the explosion was sparked by a broken headlamp, not the rockets they added as part of the demonstration.

Additionally, the demonstration was designed not as a scientific test, but as a demonstration of something that had been proven to happen in the past. The problem was that the audience was likely mislead into believing it was an experiment as opposed to a dramatic recreation. They didn't create the story out of thin air.

Regardless it was 25 years ago, and the news organization in question was shamed, retracted the story, and made a apology.