New York Times reporter assaulted, cameras stolen and damaged amid Capitol riot

January 6, 2021
New York Times reporter Erin Schaff wrote that she was assaulted, one of her cameras stolen and the lens of a second broken by rioters as they stormed the Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021.A riot broke out as supporters of President Donald Trump marched on the Capitol, swarmed the building and broke inside in an attempt to disrupt the Congressional certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory, Reuters reported. At a noon rally held in front of the …

Federal agents hit freelance photojournalist with crowd-control munitions during Portland protest

July 24, 2020
Freelance photojournalist Lee Smith said he was hit with crowd-control munitions shot by federal agents while he covered protests against police violence in Portland, Oregon, on July 24, 2020.Smith was documenting protests that continued for months in downtown Portland and across the U.S. in support of the Black Lives Matter movement following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25. The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker is documenting assaults, arrests and other incidents involving journalists covering protests.On the evening …

Photojournalist’s credentials stolen during D.C. protests

May 30, 2020
Matthew Rodier, a freelance photojournalist who was covering protests in Washington, D.C., had his National Press Photographers Association credentials stolen on May 30, 2020 by an individual who said that his photos were “getting people killed.”The protests were held in response to a video showing a white police officer kneeling on the neck of George Floyd, a Black man, during an arrest in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 25. Floyd was later pronounced dead at a local hospital. Protests against police …