President Donald Trump retweeted a video of Long Island anti-shutdown protestors calling a local TV reporter "fake news."
"Fake news is not essential," the president wrote in a retweet of the videos from News 12 Long Island reporter Kevin Vesey.
"You are the enemy of the people!" one protester shouted at the reporter,
"You are the virus!” another protestor said.
“Traitor!” another voice off-camera can be heard saying.
Many journalists tweeted support for Vesey.
"87,000 Americans dead, 1.3 million infected, and the president is attacking a local TV news reporter who was trying to do his job and cover a protest. Indecent, vile," said CNN's Jake Tapper.
"Thanks for trying to do your job @KevinVesey," wrote Katie Couric.
And Politico chief political correspondent Tim Alberta tweeted:
“It’s discouraging enough to watch the tape of these knuckledraggers harassing a reporter who’s just doing his job by covering their protest (and who produced an even-handed segment for his local newscast)”
“But to see the President pile on, bullying a civilian... it’s nauseating.”
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