Guest post by Dr. Anthony Harper
Pictured above Gray Television White House Correspondent Jon Decker harasses conservative news outlet reporter November 28, 2022.
Journalist harassment at the White House is a growing problem, especially against conservative news outlets.
Back in March 10, 2017 Gateway Pundit reporter Lucian Wintrich was harassed in the White House briefing room by Jon Decker who was then with FOX News radio. Jon Decker blocked Lucian from the restroom, shoved Lucian, and then Decker loudly informed the reporters in the room that Lucian was “anti-black, anti-Jew, and anti-woman.” Lucian is the grandson of a Holocaust survivor and a gay conservative reporter.
Lucian Wintrich: I Was Assaulted in White House Press Room – Here Is My Report
The attack was published in a Washington Times news article titled “Jon Decker of Fox News radio, Gateway Pundit reporter clash in White House briefing room.”
This past month Jon Decker was back bullying conservative reporters in the White House press room.
Jon Decker now works for Gray Television and is their White House Correspondent. On December 12, 2022, Decker harassed another reporter, Dr. Anthony Harper, with vulgarity and mocked the reporter’s educational background in front of other reporters in the White House press room.
On another occasion, this same conservative news outlet reporter was harassed by Decker regarding Covid virus for not wearing a mask when he wasn’t wearing a mask himself on November 28, 2022.
While in the bathroom at the White House on December 7, 2021, Dr. Harper allegedly overheard journalist Decker say, “I’m not going into that bathroom with that unvaccinated person.”
Ethical complaints were filed against Mr. Decker on December 15, 2022 with Gray Television, as well as with the White House press office and White House Correspondent Association leadership.
On another occasion on September 21, 2021, Salon reporter Zachary Petrizzo harassed a conservative news outlet reporter in their news report titled ‘Eccentric Christian reporter causing headaches for Jen Psaki, White House press corps.’
Also in September of 2021, an LGBTQ news website echoed Salon’s article by mocking this conservative news outlet reporter.
On another occasion, White House Correspondent Brian Karem harassed this conservative news outlet reporter on December 7, 2021, in the White House press room obsessively yelling 12 times “Get Vaccinated!” The transcript of the exchange is as follows:
Brian Karem- “Six feet. You’re not vaxxed. I love you but…”
Reporter- “I feel like I need to have a Yellow star on.”
Brian Karem- “No. That would equate this with the Holocaust. I’m asking you to treat everybody sensibly, not burn them or put them in an oven. That’s a crazy analogy, you shouldn’t adopt that, you’re better than that.”
Reporter – “Should vaccinated people be tested [for Covid]?”
Brian Karem- “Everyone can still get it. I don’t want to pass it to anyone else. Don’t mince or parse words here. You know damm well that anyone can still get it.”
Reporter- ….A lot of Christians in America know what is going on here.”
Brian Karem- “I’m a Christian in America. Don’t preach to me. Get vaccinated.”
Tim Garrity, an ABC News cameraman, also harassed this conservative news outlet reporter mocking his faith on October 22, 2021 by saying to him “You’re not vaccinated and claim to be a man of God and put everyone’s health here at risk by not being vaccinated.”
An NBC online news article published on February 12, 2021 addressed yet another case of harassment but, in this situation, it was a White House press staff member harassing the left-leaning news outlet ‘Politico’ and their reporter by stating “White House deputy press secretary TJ Ducklo was suspended for one week without pay on Friday, the administration said, after a report surfaced detailing allegations that he verbally harassed and threatened a female reporter from Politico in January.”
This is but a brief review of harassment of reporters at the White House that warrants much more investigation. The abuse needs to stop.