14 May 2010

W.Va. Press Corps Alum under Fire in Tennessee

Erik Schelzig, a statehouse correspondent for The Associated Press in Nashville, is being threatened with the loss of his press credentials there after attempting to take photos when "House Speaker Kent Williams collapsed from low blood sugar during Thursday's floor session," Romenesko and others report.

Schelzig previously covered the West Virginia Legislature. WSMV-TV has posted raw video of the episode. Lawmakers react to Schelzig's attempt to photograph the scene around 1:50 into the footage.

Romenesko reports that "capitol security threatened to carry him out," and links to a resolution calling for the loss of his press pass.

Viewers of the video may be able to judge whether Schelzig "acted without thought and good judgment in attempting to take photographs and thereby needlessly hindering emergency medical personnel from providing necessary medical care," as the resolution alleges.

KnoxNews.com
reports that the state's AP bureau chief is defending Schelzig's actions, while some lawmakers denounced them. A column on that site calls the backlash against him "more arrogance in government."

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Any lawmaker who votes for that idiot resolution ought to have his or her own floor credentials revoked.