Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Video: Police Arrest OWS Reporter As He Pleads "I'm A Reporter!"
By
Garth Johnston
Published Nov 15, 2011
Modified Nov 15, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Garth Johnston
Published Nov 15, 2011
Modified Nov 15, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
In this morning's cleanup of Zuccotti Park not only were people and animals pepper-sprayed, but airspace was cleared of helicopters, the area was locked down and approximately 70 people were arrested including city councilman Ydanis Rodriguez. And that's not all. Over the course of the morning quite a few reporters were arrested by Zuccotti Park and at the makeshift camp at Duarte Square, including an NPR freelancer, two reporters from DNAinfo, one from The Local, one from the Daily News and a reporter and a photographer from the Associated Press (also, an NBC reporter's press pass was confiscated). Want to know what it is like to be arrested by a police officer who doesn't care if you've got credentials? Click on!
That video was taken by The Local's Jared Malsin—who totally does a great Jimmy Olsen impersonation at the end there as he calls out, "I'm a reporter! I'm a reporter! I'm a journalist!"
That the NYPD was arresting clearly accredited journalists has pissed off many, and has added fuel to the fire alleging that the police's aggressive anti-media stance was "completely deliberate." Beyond arresting them, it seems that a number of journalists were abused this morning (though "Paul J. Browne, the Police Department’s chief spokesman, said he saw 'nobody' who was manhandled."). Talking to the Times, NY1 reporter Lindsey Christ described the shoving she and others suffered at the hands of the police: "Those 20 minutes were some of the scariest of my life."
While The Local reporter, NPR freelancer Julie Walker and DNAinfo News Editor Patrick Hedlund were all arrested near Zuccotti, DNA's photographer Paul Lomax, the News' Matthew Lysiak, and the AP's Karen Matthews and Seth Wenig were all taken into custody at Duarte Square around noon.
This morning at his press conference Mayor Bloomberg said that "the police department routinely keeps members of the press off to the side when they're in the middle of a police action. It's to prevent the situation from getting worse and to protect members of the press." In response, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer pointed out this afternoon that, "American foreign correspondents routinely put themselves in harm’s way to do their jobs, in some of the most brutal dictatorships in the world. And their NYC colleagues deserve the freedom to make the same choice. Zuccotti Park is not Tiananmen Square."
Tagged
journalists
nypd
occupy wall street
ows
reporters
Garth Johnston
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Queens man charged with hate crime at Jewish-owned bagel shop displaying Israeli flags
Prosecutors say the 22-year-old damaged property outside the Fresh Meadows shop twice in May.
By
Giulia Heyward
Published Oct 19, 2026 at 6:07 p.m. ET
MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says
In some cases, the damage was “clearly not recent."
By
Stephen Nessen
News
MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says
In some cases, the damage was “clearly not recent."
By
Stephen Nessen
High-ranking NYC officials to testify in ex-buildings boss Eric Ulrich's corruption trial
By
David Brand
Mamdani launches new team to help NYers keep SNAP, Medicaid benefits
By
Caroline Lewis
Riders at 53rd St. station where man was fatally shot say they worry about gun violence
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .