Reporters feeling the pinch

Aug 14 2007 by Gregg Easteal, Evening Gazette

ANYONE see Channel Four News reporter Sue Turton getting her bottom pinched live on air as she reported on rising floodwaters in Oxfordshire?

You'd have struggled to miss it.

Somehow it even managed to be front page news on the Daily Mail - which ran a large beaming photograph of Sue's face rather than her rear on its cover along with a frame by frame account of how a passer by seemingly couldn't resist a pinch on page three.

Incredibly police time and money was even wasted hunting the prankster down and giving him a formal caution about his behaviour.

Sue said she didn't want to see the man prosecuted but then promptly bleated about the sexist suffering of female correspondents.

Come on Sue, get a grip.

She and the police were guilty of taking the whole thing way too seriously.

Sue reckoned male reporters wouldn't have to put up with the same ghastly treatment at the hands of the public.

Well Sue, I have news for you.

I for one have been pinched, pushed, shoved and shouted at live on air down the years.

One man even saw fit to park his chin on my shoulder before dangling his bad breath and his tongue dangerously close to my ear before then getting a bout of stage fright and darting off.

Anyone hear me squealing sexual harassment or calling the police?

No.

Frankly it would have been ridiculous and wrong.

Ironically the only real sexism in the whole episode was the attention it got. Does our Sue really think the Daily Mail would have devoted so many column inches to her picture and her predicament if it weren't for the fact she's actually quite a pretty girl?

Sue and the police should have kept it in perspective.

Reporters aren't any more special than anyone else. We ought not to dial 999 or yell sexism when the public try to throw us off balance.

Instead all of us news types can only make the same civilised and simple plea to passers by that anyone at work is entitled to make.

Please don't ruin what we may have been working on for hours.

You wouldn't walk through a builder's wet concrete, stick your hand through a baker's freshly iced wedding cake or pull all a telephone engineer's wires out while he's working up a telegraph pole.

Gregg Easteal is a reporter for North East Tonight - weeknights at six on ITV1.