Man arrested after grabbing Black reporter, yelling obscenities during live shot

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A Chicago man was arrested after he grabbed a TV reporter during a live broadcast on Saturday night.

Gaynor Hall was giving an introduction to a story about damages that Shorewood, Illinois had sustained from a recent windstorm. During the live shot, a man ran up to Hall, grabbed her, and shouted “f*ck her right in the p*ssy” at the camera.

READ MORE: Tamron Hall opens up on her responsibilities as a Black reporter

The station, WGN, quickly moved to cut the shot and later apologized to viewers for the language while assuring viewers that Hall was “fine.” 

In a Facebook post, Hall wrote, “Thanks to your help, he was identified and arrested. Thank you all so much for your kind words and support. I am ok and I appreciate you more than you know.” 

She also wrote a message directly to the man, “It was not funny. You violated my personal space. You grabbed me. You scared me. Was it worth it?

The man was not wearing a face covering, amid the coronavirus pandemic, exposing Hall to possible infection. 

His comment proved to be a copy cat prank from a viral “news” clip that hit the internet in 2014.

The clip that inspired the recent Hall incident showed a man clad in a black hoodie responding to how a local area was being affected by an oil spill, “I was sitting on my front porch, grabbed a beer,” the man says, “and “f*cked her right in the p*ssy!”

But, the report was not real. Instead, it was a viral hoax. However, the man who accosted Hall was very real. 

On Twitter, she shared the link to her Facebook page with the caption, “Tough night.”

READ MORE: #RacistInChief trends after Trump tells Asian reporter to ‘ask China’

Viewers have offered support to Hall with hundreds of comments on her post filled with sympathy, prayers, and support. 

In December 2019, a female reporter was sexually assaulted in Savannah, Georgia. While covering a race, a man ran past Alex Bozarjian and patted her backside.

She later said, “To the man who smacked my butt on live TV this morning: You violated, objectified, and embarrassed me. No woman should ever have to put up with this at work or anywhere.”