Reporting is a difficult job. The journalist may have to cover war-zones or conflict areas and their safety is always at risk in such places. But while reporting from a relatively safe city, in the middle of the road, one may not be thinking of firearms and conflict. Unfortunately for one Fox reporter, his report about virtual conventions was interrupted by the sounds of bullets. Jeff McAdam was live on Fox5, San Diego from the West Harbor Drive when a scuffle between officers and a civilian resulted in a shootout.
McAdam was informing the studio about Comic-Con’s plans this year to remain virtual. He pauses a little when the gunshot is heard and moves away just a bit. However, he continues to read his report while the armed conflict goes on.
The camera turns to showcase the scene. A man holds a gun which is pointed at a uniformed police officer standing by a Port of San Diego Harbor Police vehicle. After calls from the officer, the man finally crouches down. According to Fox, “the driver was stopped at 5th Avenue and Harbor Drive for a traffic violation.”
But the situation escalated rather quickly as the man opened fire. In retaliation, the police officer also fired a few bullets. The perpetrator has been taken into custody.
McAdam shared the clip on his Twitter account and has received a lot of praise for being so professional throughout. In a follow-up segment with the studio, McAdam admitted that he was still quite shaken up.
The police also corroborated that neither the shooter nor the police officer was harmed. One stray bullet did reach a passer-by on the road, but he had some heavy object in his pocket which saved him from any injury.
Officer-involved shooting in the middle of my live report. Full story and footage on @fox5sandiego at 10 pic.twitter.com/aHZNpOBn17— Jeff McAdam (@JeffMcAdamTV) March 2, 2021
People’s reaction ranged from concern for his safety to suggestions about how journalists need to be trained, whether or not they are going to a war-zone.
Wow.. glad you guys are ok. You both got super lucky. This just adds to the justification that journalists need safety training. Unless you are going overseas to work in a war zone, no one ever talks to crews about what to do when shots ring out. #journalistsafety— Chris Post (@ChrisMPost) March 2, 2021
@DanicaTVNews I think we need to teach him to duck next time ♀️— Lindsay M Hood (@loolindsayhoo) March 2, 2021
Bruh still talking and I be like… pic.twitter.com/JmzKMXYCAK— IslandTime (@SDislandtime) March 2, 2021
You handled that very well. Glad you’re safe.— Peter Maxwell (@KHQPeterMaxwell) March 3, 2021
Jeff, u are the man. How u remained calm and continued to report is crazy. The average reporter would have been taken off down the street. RESPECT BRO.— DC REALTIME NEWS (@RealTimeNews10) March 2, 2021
What a true example of professionalism and composure. So glad you are ok physically. Students need to see this.— Laura Castañeda (@Presspasslc) March 2, 2021
A few weeks back, a similar incident showed when Bob Barnard, a reporter at FOX 5 DC was reporting from the snow-covered neighbourhood, a puppy came running towards him. The reporter picked up the pet dog and exclaimed, “Forget the people we talked to earlier! I want to get to know this dog.”