‘F– Michelle Fields!’ — Interview With Reporter Harassed at Occupy DC Protest

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Michelle Fields stands next to a policeman while
covering ‘Occupy DC’ protests, Nov. 4, 2011

Michelle Fields, a young video reporter for the Daily Caller, was assigned to cover Friday night’s Occupy DC protests outside the Americans for Prosperity “Defending the American Dream” conference at the Washington Convention Center. In an interview Saturday morning, Fields described how she was targeted for harassment:

Robert Stacy McCain: You won’t be going back?
Michelle Fields, Daily Caller: I won’t be going back to cover it. I actually don’t feel safe going back to those protests, because they singled me out, they singled out the Daily Caller. I just don’t think it’s safe for me to be back around those people.
They actually had a person covering me all night, for about three hours, with someone walking around with a camera, screaming things out to me like, “You’re worse than Fox,” and attacking me, attacking what I’m wearing. So I won’t be returning.

McCAIN: Attacking what you were wearing?
FIELDS: Exactly, yes. I think they were just trying to figure out ways to upset me — about the clothing I was wearing, where apparently I shop, really strange stuff.

McCAIN: Where you shop?
FIELDS: Exactly, yes.

McCAIN: You were wearing what? Abercrombie & Fitch or what?
FIELDS: They were screaming out that I was wearing [designer] Ann Taylor. So I’m not sure — I wasn’t wearing Ann Taylor.

McCAIN: Oh, my goodness.
FIELDS: They were screaming stuff out like that. They were screaming like, ‘F– Michelle Fields!’
And when I tried to conduct interviews, an individual would jump in front of the camera and stop the interview, or block it with a piece of paper or cardboard, so that we couldn’t tape anything or talk to anyone.

McCAIN: Oh, my goodness. So while they want all the friendly media they can get, in terms of —
FIELDS: Exactly, yes. And so people started chanting, ‘Right-wing extremists,’ while we were trying to interview people, and they talked to people who were part of Occupy DC and told them not to talk to us. So they chanted that, they chanted songs at me that I’m ugly, like ‘U-G-L-Y, you ain’t got no alibi, you’re ugly,’ to me individually, and that I’m a ‘horrible person.’ It was, literally, just attacking me and the Daily Caller, but specifically me.

McCAIN: Wow. Wow. And so they had somebody whose job was apparently to monitor you?
FIELDS: Exactly, yes. So for about three hours, I had someone following me around, harassing me, screaming things out to me. And I actually did not feel comfortable, because at one point there were a whole group of men surrounding me saying, ‘F—Michelle Fields.’  And I went to a police officer and I told him that I felt these people were harassing me. And the police officer said he’d take care of it, but it never ended. These people were harassing me for the entire evening.

McCAIN: Oh, my goodness. Oh, my goodness. These are the enlightened, tolerant, liberal, progressives.
FIELDS: Supposedly.

* * * * * *

UPDATE (Smitty): Welcome, Instapundit readers!

UPDATE II (RSM): Linked by Don Surber, Darleen Click at Protein Wisdom, Dan Collins at The Conservatory, Fire Andrea Mitchell and The Lonely Conservative — thanks! — and welcome, Hot Air readers!

PREVIOUSLY: #OWS Protesters Attempt to Storm AFP Defending the American Dream Summit


242 comments

  1. Why don’t you get the fuck over yourself? Your rag has already made its contribution to the cause of making sure Republicans have a good solid establishment candidate to give next year’s concession speech, so you’ve really done and said quite enough, haven’t you?

  2. Zilla, please, I beg you.  DO NOT ASSOCIATE THE RON PAUL NUTS WITH THE LIBERTARIAN MOVEMENT.  They are anti-War, and stridently Leftist America-haters on foreign policy.  They do not in any manner, shape or form represent the mainstream of the libertarian movement.  We real libertarians are opposed to Islamism and see it as a direct threat to our personal liberties.

  3. Deleted? You mean the comment almost identical to this one that’s still right there on the fricking page? Is that the comment you’re talking about?

    Jesus, you couldn’t parody these idiots faster then they’re parodying themselves, trying to be serious.

  4. TPT,

    From long experience, I have to tell you that trying to make definitional sense of political terms with Eric is a lost cause.

    For years, he insisted that the neoconservative movement was the same movement as the Viguerie/Philips/Schlafly “New Right” because “neo” means “new” and “conservatives are “on the right.”

  6. Only reich-wing rhetoric excites the nutjobs. Or didn’t you get the “new tone” memo”?

    I’ll have Lumbergh send it to you again.

  7. Yeah, because Mike Tyson’s low-brow, bathroom humor comments about anything or anybody are of such grave importance they should always be published with a titillating title designed to make people want to read how he bashed Sarah Palin in the grossest, most sexually explicit terms. You know, just in case she gets some foolish idea in her head about running for President and stuff.

  8. They also didn’t say F*ck Michelle Fields, they said F*ck the Daily Caller.
    Gee, big difference right there. I can’t see why she would feel intimidated.
    /

  14. Well, Eric, you’re the one who brought up the Giffords shooting.

    I must admit that when there was a newsflash about a Democratic congresswoman getting shot at a rally, my first thought was “oh, shit, I hope it wasn’t Dondero.”

    After all, only two days before you had publicly rhetorically asked “Is the once mighty Democratic Party Party going Extinct?” Coincidence?

    But, of course, I reserved judgment and whaddayaknow, it turned out to be someone else.

  15. Let me help you out, Treacher, with some potential future headlines you  might want to check into-

    Michelle Bachmann- Dangerous Religious Fanatic Almost Never Misses A Sunday Church Service

    SPECIAL INVESTIGATION- Why Have So Many Children Been Abducted Within A 200 Mile Radius Of Rick Santorum’s Pennsylvania Home?

    Herman Cain Has A Negro Penis Says Accuser

    Keep them in mind. I’m sure if you look into them you can come up with some compelling evidence of wrongdoing. You know, if you really try.

  17. You have a bad habit of responding to things people didn’t say, as if they had said them. You might want to cut back on that.

  22. Professor Jacobson said something nice about one of your tweets the other day. Why don’t you go over to his site and insult him and his readers some more.

  27. She’s actually pretty darned hot, isn’t she?

    I suspect it’s just because those losers have only been that close to a female that attractive when she passed them on the street.  So they overcompensate, like an 8 year old putting a frog down her back.

    After following her around for a couple of hours, they will be in their tents.  In a circle.  And those aren’t drums.

  28. So those claiming to represent 99% of the population think that screaming obscenities at people who don;t show them sufficient reverence is somehow a wonderful thing? I don’t remember investing in anyone that mandate.

  29. Yuk, yuk, laugh, laugh. C’mon people…these douchebag freaks are fronting for Obama ’12 and we’re busy working up a lather over who said fuck to whom? It’s growing more clear by the day that the elected (Dem) leaders are not going to uphold the law. That gives us two options…a 1st and a 2nd. If we don’t vote these crooks and cowards out of office next year, we will find ourselves faced with the prospect of using that 2nd option. It won’t be so funny then.   

  30. Do you need a degree in Gender Studies to spew that stuff out?  These adult women are “girls” to you? 

    Report to the Rape Tent Working Group right away, Chomsky.

  31. It’s hard out here for a pimp.  He unshackled her to go get him some beer, and dang if she didn’t come back with DVDs of the Mary Tyler Moore Show.

  36. Absolutely. Got one right to the back of my house, and five miles of hunting preserve to boot….could bury hundreds of totalitarians easy.

  37. What is very unfortunate about this article and the savage IDIOTS at the OCCUPY demonstrations is that a majority of the American People seem to support the demonstrations without realizing what these INTOLERANT MORONS are doing or what they stand for which is anything between NOTHING and ANARCHY. 

    Fascist Mobs are intimidating law abiding citizens.  The ultimate way of dealing with Fascist MOBs is to DESTROY them criminally and civilly.  Make them PAY a PRICE for their criminal, savage behavior.

  38. I’m only vaguely aware of who you, are now I know why the whole “So you really only care about facts when it’s politically expedient.” shtick is already extremely tedious.

  46. So you really only care about facts when it’s politically expedient. Good to know.

    I’m glad you mentioned that. It just so happens I might, just might, have a good story about a candidate that might not be so politically expedient for him. It would be good if somebody with access to the DC’s investigatory resources were to look into it. Let me know if you’re interested and I’ll give you a link so you can begin your investigation.

    Oh yeah, its about Mitt Romney.

    I’ll be waiting to hear from you (snort)

  47. Oh, I’m sorry. That first comment wasn’t meant to be insulting to our host. My bad. “You’re” so funny.

  49. “While I’m not a Ron Paul fan, I generally blame candidates for their own actions, not their supporters’ actions.”

    “I signed off on no ovens! Zose ver my supporters!”

  50. My point was, and is, that it is a government building, not a private building.

    If you point to a Blackhawk helicopter and call it a Super Cobra, me explaining to you that it is one rather than the other doesn’t necessarily mean that I think you should — or shouldn’t — fly it.

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