A CNN reporter and camera crew who were covering the protests against George Floyd's murder by police in Minneapolis were arrested by Minnesota state officers on live television. On Friday (May 29th) morning, reporter Omar Jimenez was taken into police custody along with members of his crew, and was held there for over an hour before they were released.
The Minnesota State Patrol made a statement indicating that, "in the course of clearing the streets and restoring order at Lake Street and Snelling Avenue, four people were arrested by State Patrol troopers, including three members of a CNN crew. The three were released once they were confirmed to be members of the media." However, footage shows that this account is simply untrue. "This is not accurate," CNN responded. "Our CNN crew identified themselves, on live television, immediately as journalists."
"A CNN reporter & his production team were arrested this morning in Minneapolis for doing their jobs, despite identifying themselves — a clear violation of their First Amendment rights," the network said in another statement shortly after the arrest. "The authorities in Minnesota, including the Governor, must release the 3 CNN employees immediately." Gov. Tim Walz later apologized and indicated that the arrests should not have happened in the first place.
Following his release, Omar Jimenez told his CNN colleagues that he and his crew, producer Bill Kirkos and photojournalist Leonel Mendez, were trying to move out of the officers way while they were conducting arrests. However, a protestor had run by them and was arrested, which somehow led to their arrests as well, despite identifying themselves as media. "There was no animosity there; they weren't violent with me," Omar said of the arresting officers. He indicated that one officer told him, "I'm just following orders." Another CNN reporter, Josh Campbell, was also approached by police while covering the protests, but was not arrested. "I identified myself," Josh, who is a white man, recalled. "They said, 'OK, you're permitted to be in the area.' I was treated much differently than (Jimenez) was."
On Friday morning around 8:45am CT, Omar tweeted a photo of himself reporting to the camera, while police guarded the Target store that was looted by protestors late Wednesday (May 27th) night in the background. "And we’re back," he captioned the photo.
50 Cent Reacts To Black CNN Reporter’s Arrest During Minneapolis Protests
50 Cent reacted to the arrest of black CNN reporter, Oscar Jimenez, and his crew while they were covering the protests in Minneapolis.
50 Cent, like many others, is outraged that a black CNN reporter, Omar Jimenez, was arrested along with his crew while they were covering the protests in Minneapolis, while his white colleague, Josh Campbell, was not. Early Friday morning (May 29th), CNN reported that one of their correspondents had been taken into police custody along with two members of his reporting crew.
The arrest was captured on live television, the footage from which shows Omar, along with producer Bill Kirkos and photojournalist Leonel Mendez, clearly identifying themselves as journalists. However, they were held in police custody for over an hour before being released. Gov. Tim Walz later apologized for the senseless arrest, insisting that it should never have happened.
The arrest of Omar and his crew was upsetting enough, but it was brought to the public's attention that another CNN reporter, Josh Campbell, had also been covering the protests in Minneapolis at the same time. Josh, who is a white man, indicated that police had in fact approached him as well, but allowed him to continue reporting. "I identified myself," Josh recalled. "They said, 'OK, you're permitted to be in the area.' I was treated much differently than (Jimenez) was." This difference in treatment lead many to believe Omar's arrest was racially charged, including Fif.
"One they let walk away, one they took to jail," 50 wrote on his post, which shows a photo of Josh and a photo of Omar side-by-side. "This sh*t is sad." Following the arrest, CNN political analyst Bakari Sellers commented on the significant role that race played in the situation. "We have a white reporter on the ground, and we have a brown reporter on the ground," Bakari noted. "They are a block apart. The brown reporter is arrested and the white reporter is telling us what's happening. We saw a reporter who is educated, who is brown, who is doing his job better than anybody ... (who) was in harm's way, letting the American people see what's going on, on the ground. He complied. He said he would move...You almost have to laugh not to just be furious."
A few hours after they were released from police custody, Omar and his crew returned to the streets to continue covering the riots. "And we’re back," he tweeted.
Donald Trump Abruptly Ends Tense Press Conference
The war between President Donald Trump and the news media continues to heat up, following a tense exchange during a press conference.
Some things in life are inevitable -- death, taxes, and the animosity between President Donald Trump and media journalists. Unfortunately, there appears to be a masochistic back-and-forth that never ceases, as both parties are frequently positioned to square off during press conferences and briefings. And while Donald Trump has never been shy to put a reporter on blast, yesterday found him opting for a different maneuver altogether. Taking his ball and going home.
Andrew Harrer-Pool/Getty Images
It began when a CBS White House correspondent named Weijia Jiang asked Donald Trump the following question: "You've said many times that the U.S. is doing better than any other country when it comes to testing. Why does that matter? Why is this a global competition to you if every day Americans are still losing their lives and we're still seeing more cases every day?"
Donald Trump responded by saying "maybe that's a question you should ask China," an answer that drew confusion from the Asian-American reporter. "Sir, why are you saying that to me, specifically?" she questions, the implication being that Trump's line of questioning was racially motivated. Stonefaced, Trump invites another reporter to ask a question, though he changes his mind the moment before she's able to speak. Clearly perturbed by what he feels to be "nasty" questions, Trump calls the press conference to a premature close and walks off-stage.
While it's clear that both sides will spin the events however they see fit, the fact remains that Trump's relationship with the media is only getting more volatile by the day. Following the exchange, Trump's former political rival Senator Bernie Sanders weighed in, describing the President's behavior as "pathetic." The cycle continues.
Trump Calls Reporter "Loudmouth" During Heated Conference
If you draw Donald Trump’s ire, even during a press conference, he can and will take his damn ball and GTFO.
To say Donald Trump dislikes the media is, quite possibly, the understatement of the decade. It’s entirely likely that he has lost hours of sleep carving the names of journalists onto his ever-growing shit-list, one that has surpassed Herman Melville’s Moby Dick in sheer scope. No matter what might be going on, the exchanges between media members and the President of the United States remains unwaveringly contentious, with neither party looking to give an inch of ground — even if it means derailing an entire conference to stage a squabble.
Zach Gibson – Pool/Getty Images
It would seem as if Trump is back on his proverbial BS, as it were, taking a moment to put yet another reporter on blast in signature fashion. It all began when reporter Brian Karem began asking a question about social distancing, only to be interrupted by the frenzied POTUS. “The Governors are supposed to do testing,” responds Trump, cutting him off before the actual question could be finished.
Since Trump happened to answer a question that wasn’t actually being asked, Karem continued, only to really draw the President’s ire. Not only did Trump continuously hit him with demands to be quiet, but he warned that should he not obey, he would take his ball and go home. “I told them, when they put this guy here it’s nothing but trouble,” vents Trump. “He’s a showboat. If you keep talking I’m going to leave and you can have it out with them. Just a loudmouth.”
Serena Williams Shuts Down Question About Prince Harry & Meghan Markle
“Good try.”
#MEGXIT is one of the biggest international stories at the moment. Last week, Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, formally announced their plans to take a step back from the royal family. They wish to establish some financial independence by renouncing royal titles and state funding. “We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages,” the couple wrote in an Instagram post. People across the world clutched their pearls and pointed fingers upon hearing this news, trying to figure out why the Harry & Meg would break from precedent and disrespect the Queen in this manner.
Given this a huge trending topic and any post related to #MEGXIT can attract clicks (yes, I see the irony in this), a reporter tried to get Serena Williams to comment on it. “Your good friend, Meghan Markle, who attended your last 2 slams, and Harry, have taken a move, a stance that many people think is extraordinary and historic,” the reporter said. “What are your feelings about that? Have you spoken to her?”
Considering this topic has no connection to Williams’ profession, she declined to share her thoughts on it during an Australian Open press conference. “Yeah, I have absolutely no comments on anything with that,” Williams replied. “But good try. You tried. You did good.” Props to Williams for avoiding that bait.
Bill Belichick Gives Classic Non-Answer To Tom Brady Question: Watch
Did we really expect anything else?
Bill Belichick and Tom Brady have had a bit of a weird relationship over the years. The coach/QB duo has won six Super Bowls together although they seem to be at odds much of the time. Every single year, there are reports that the two are bickering over something and that their union could be coming to an end. This year, even more rumors have swirled as Brady’s contract is coming to an end.
Heading into this weekend’s wild-card game against the Tennessee Titans, the Patriots’ future is being questioned and reporters are trying to get some answers out of Belichick. In the clip below, courtesy of TMZ, a reporter boldly asks Belichick how he feels about Saturday potentially being his last game with Brady. As you can imagine, Belichick gave a complete non-answer that tells us absolutely nothing.
Despite not really saying anything, Belichick’s answer remains newsworthy. The Patriots haven’t been extraordinary on the offensive side of the ball and Brady is part of the reason for that. The legendary head coach will want to keep his QB motivated heading into Saturday especially with all of the doubters throwing noise their way. Belichick doesn’t want any distractions plaguing his team and the media’s urge to ask him about Brady’s future is the ultimate smokescreen.
If you’re a Patriots fan, you’ve got to be just a tad nervous heading into this wild-card matchup.