DC mob assaults journalist for recording protest outside White House

BLM and anti-statue protestors hurled threats and obscenities at Daily Caller reporter Shelby Talcott in Washington, D.C. before trying to steal her phone and pushing her Monday evening amid a resurgence of protesters and vandals in the area.

Another Daily Caller reporter, Matthew Miller, took to Twitter late Monday evening, tweeting footage of Talcott getting harassed by BLM demonstrators, saying: "My colleague @ShelbyTalcott was surrounded by BLM protesters and assaulted tonight in front of the WH. She is okay and was saved by a cop grabbing her out of the mob. I couldnt get full altercation because we had to jump in. This is right before the cop saves her."

One young woman on camera can be seen, saying, "so don't record, we don't like that." This same woman also told Talcott that she would get "all your money" if Talcott were to capture her face on the recording.

And toward the end of the video, a man screams: "You're just recording for no fucking reason!"

Jorge Ventura captured a separate incident involving Talcott and the unruly demonstrators, which involved the demonstrators putting their hands in front of the video. Not only were the demonstrators harassing the reporters and trying to block them from recording, but one person started blaring a siren just inches away from Talcott's face.

About halfway through the two-minute segment, a person who appears to be wearing a hockey helmet shoves Talcott, attempting to drive her out of the area.

Demonstrators can also be seen shoving her toward the end of the clip and trying to flip her hat off her head. According to Ventura, they assaulted Talcott and even tried to steal her phone, which drew the intervention of the police.

Why demonstrators would try to block reporters capturing footage of a "peaceful protest" is unclear.

The night ended with Talcott getting home safely, as she tweeted: "Dang, thanks for all of the messages. Tonight I was accused of being a cop and assaulted by protesters. I was pushed towards the police line where some officers grabbed me and pulled me to safety. I was handcuffed but not arrested, and they released me in a safe area."

This incident was not an isolated one, as demonstrators and vandals spray-painted St. John's Church in DC with the letters BHAZ, which allegedly stands for "Black House Autonomous Zone."

There is little doubt that the DC demonstrators were inspired by the "Capitol Hill Occupied Protest" in Seattle, which was the location of two shootings over the weekend, ending the life of one person and injuring two others. This has prompted Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan to step in.

There have also been efforts in Seattle to block civilians and journalists from recording within CHOP, just as in DC. Twitch streamer Shawn Whiting recorded events in Seattle leading up to the second shooting in CHOP, which prompted a man to demand he stop recording before stealing his phone.