Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz apologized to journalists who were detained or struck by tear gas or rubber bullets during the heated protests related to the death of George Floyd.
“It’s unacceptable what happened to our reporters,” Walz said during a press conference on Sunday. “I will do everything that I am asking: How do we change the situation? What do we do next time to make sure that they are not there?”
Journalists across the country have experienced being caught in the crossfire of violent clashes with police and protesters heightened by the intensity of protests over the weekend.
In Minneapolis, the epicenter of the unrest, a freelance journalist reported being blinded in her left eye after being hit in her face with a rubber bullet fired by police officers while covering protests in Minneapolis. Another reporter for Townhall reported getting struck by a rubber bullet by riot police in the city. MSNBC’s Ali Velshi was also met with rubber bullets and tear gas deployed by police while covering the Minneapolis unrest.
In addition to police cracking down on reporters, Poynter, a nonprofit journalism school and research organization, reported that demonstrators trashed several news vehicles in several other cities, including Boston, Atlanta, Louisville, and Los Angeles. A separate local TV station in Louisville said its news vehicle was smashed in by protesters while a photographer was attacked by a mob and thrown to the ground.
Additionally, a photographer for the Las Vegas Review-Journal said she was arrested while covering crowds. A photojournalist for KDKA TV in Pittsburgh tweeted he was attacked by protesters and was stomped and kicked by them. On Friday, a Fox News reporter and crew were chased out by angry protesters in Washington, D.C., a few days after a CNN reporter and crew were arrested live on TV.
In Louisville, Kentucky, an officer fired what appeared to be pepper balls at a reporter for the local TV station, WAVE 3 News.
Walz said he will make an effort to try and prevent future incidents where reporters are impacted by law enforcement while doing their jobs.
