September 11, 2020
| By: Michael C.G. Jamon
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Trump Campaign Kicks New York Times Reporter Out of Rally
Michael C.G. Jamon
White House [Public Domain]
President Trump flew aboard Air Force One yesterday to host an airport hangar rally in Freeland, Michigan.
Trump’s hour and fifteen-minute speech drew an estimated crowd of over 5,000 which was documented by Michigan-based New York Times correspondent Kathy Gray:
However, minutes into the rally Gray was removed from the venue by the Trump campaign.
“I’ve been kicked out of the trump [sic] rally,” Gray tweeted.
“First for me: Trump campaign tracked me down from pics i [sic] tweeted and escorted me out,” she continued.
According to Deadline, a source in the Trump campaign claims Gray was not credentialed to cover the event:
Gray had not applied for credentials through the normal process, was in the general audience acting as a reporter. Their rule is that reporters must stay in the designated press area shortly before the president’s arrival and for the duration of his stay. The reporter was told she could stay in the general admission area, but not while reporting, and she declined. The reporter was then asked to leave the event, the source said.
A New York Times spokesperson said in a statement that the publication was “disappointed:
“We’re disappointed that the Trump campaign refused to credential our freelancer and then, when she registered and attended as a member of the public, they ejected her from the event,” a New York Times spokesperson said in a statement. “Our goal is to cover these campaign events and talk to voters about the candidates, and that’s what Kathy was trying to do.”
Trump has often referred to the New York Times as the “failing New York Times” and “Fake News New York Times.”
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