Minnesota Governor Tim Walz Apologizes After CNN’s Omar Jimenez Arrested On Live TV While Reporting On Minneapolis Protests
by Becca LongmireCNN correspondent Omar Jimenez and his camera crew were arrested live on television while reporting from the Minneapolis protests for CNN’s “New Day” Friday morning.
In the incident, which took place shortly after 6 a.m. ET, a co-operative Jimenez explains how they were going to move wherever riot police wanted them to go. However, things then take a bizarre turn as he is arrested and led away.
Anchor John Berman could be heard saying off-screen, “That is an American television reporter being led away by police officers. He clearly identified himself as a reporter and was respectfully explaining to the police that the CNN team was there and moving away as they would request, and then for some reason he was taken into police custody live on television.”
“I have never seen anything like this,” Berman added.
CNN has since released a statement on Twitter:
Piers Morgan, Jillian Barberie, and many more slammed Minnesota police on social media.
It was later reported that CNN president Jeff Zucker had spoken with Tim Walz, the governor of Minnesota, who said he “deeply apologizes” for what happened.
Jimenez and the crew have since been released, with the CNN anchor giving an interview about what happened.
“The moment before the arrest happened we saw one protester, or at least someone that was not media, run past us and that person was cornered by the state patrol.
“After that person was apprehended they then turned toward us. That was the first moment that people had gotten behind us, so in a sense we were surrounded.
“Everyone was pretty cordial after [our arrest] happened,” adding the officer said he was “just following orders.”
Following the arrest, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz apologized to the CNN reporter and his colleagues.
“This is a very public apology to that team,” Walz said at a news conference just hours after Jimenez and his two coworkers were taken into custody. They have since been released.
Protests have been raging in Minneapolis since a black man, George Floyd, died in police custody after a cop appeared to kneel on his neck Monday.
