Someone at Zuccotti Park threatened to stab a local Fox reporter in the neck with a pen, and a reporter covering the story buried the lede, leading not with the assault but with reports that the cops are removing protesters' generators. What's more, this squish reporter downplayed the assault, defended #OWS, and suggested that the assailant wasn't really a protester.
Can you imagine how Fox would howl about a report like that if it appeared on a non-Fox channel? But the thing is, the reporter who was threatened -- John Huddy of Fox's New York affiliate -- is the same reporter who's downplaying the threat and defending the majority of the occupiers. So maybe it's OK!
Fox 5 News Reporter Assaulted At OWS: MyFoxNY.com
Huddy:
Thus far, this has been peaceful here in the park. Unfortunately, I had an encounter with one of the protesters who's been here. This is somebody that I've come across several times in the last few days. And I want to be very clear about this: This person is not representative of the overall group here. This is one person that unfortunately I had this situation with -- he threatened to stab me in the throat -- but, as I discussed with several of the protesters who apologized to me, that, again, this person doesn't represent the whole....
That person -- I'm not sure what his name is -- he was arrested, detained by police. It is unfortunate -- listening to that and looking at the video -- it's very unfortunate, because, in the experience that I've had covering this now for six weeks, I've not had any confrontations, not had a problem. In fact, quite the opposite. When we've gone in there -- we've gone in there multiple times -- the folks in there have been gracious, they've been accommodating, they've answered all our questions, I think not only myself but some of the other reporters. So, again, I don't think this person represents the whole, but it's a part of an element that officials, NYPD officials and city officials, have been concerned about, some folks coming here for the accommodations, to sleep here, for free food and that kind of thing.
He's implying that this guy isn't a protester but a homeless person, possibly mentally unstable. He's letting the actual protesters off the hook.
Yeah, I suppose even this fits into a Fox-style narrative in which even law-abiding activity by these protesters breeds societal chaos. But Huddy's not blaming them. He's taking great pains not to hold them accountable. Can you imagine the grief he'd get on the right if he weren't a Fox employee?
Fox needs to hurry up and get him out of there. He's obviously been brainwashed and probably is suffering from PTSD!
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