Another Fordtastic confontation

[Locutus]

Mayor Rob Ford chases and confronts Toronto Star reporter



Toronto News: Mayor Rob Ford chases and confronts Toronto Star reporter - thestar.com




Police called to mayor's home over Star reporter's alleged trespassing



Police called to mayor's home over Star reporter's alleged trespassing | Toronto & GTA | News | Toronto Sun


Rob Ford calls police, confronts man ‘fists cocked’ after spotting reporter near his home



Rob Ford calls police after spotting photographer near his home | Posted Toronto | National Post




Now...whether Rob had the reporters' cock in his fist, or his own cock, we may never know.

But why did a member of the press (especially the self-righteous anti-Ford Star) drop his phone and camera just because Rob said so? These days reporters get all indignant and pissy and imply you'll not bully them (the press) and you can have my camera when you pry it from my dead cold hands.

What gives here? Was buddy standing on those cinder blocks? Shooting over Robs' fence? Probably. But still, to give up your equipment with possible evidence to prove your point?

You're an award-winning reporter dude. What gives pal?

 

[mentalfloss]

Reporter denies Toronto mayor's trespass accusation | CTV News

Ford has cried wolf enough times that I highly doubt the reporter was actually trespassing on his property.

 

[Locutus]

Guess the neighbour is wrong too. He saw buddy and went over to Fords' house to tell him.

Whatever.

I still wanna hear why our tender reporter handed-over his equipment to a doofus mayor when he'd done nothing wrong.

 

[mentalfloss]

I still wanna hear why our tender reporter handed-over his equipment to a doofus mayor when he'd done nothing wrong.

No idea, but I highly doubt he was trespassing.

Agitated Toronto mayor confronts reporter outside home
Star reporter says mayor charged at him

The Star published a web story written by Dale on Wednesday evening that said Ford has applied to purchase a parcel of wooded land adjacent to the backyard of his Etobicoke house. The parcel of land belongs to the Toronto Conservation Authority.

The Star reports that Ford filed the request as a private citizen and for the purpose of installing an upgraded security fence on his property.

Dale said he went out to see the land on Wednesday evening.

Ford said a neighbour alerted him to Dale's presence, which prompted Ford to go to the back of the house and confront him.

“Enough is enough. I have to protect my family," an upset Ford said. "It was unbelievable what the Star was doing. I’m not going to put up with it. If I have to press charges I will.”

Ford said Dale was taking pictures over the back of his fence. Star spokesman Bob Hepburn said Dale didn't go into Ford's yard and remained on public property throughout the incident.

In an online piece explaining his version of events, Dale denies that he stepped on private property but was instead on public land and conducting research for his story.

"I’m still not sure if the parcel I was standing on is the parcel Ford is looking to acquire, but I can say this with certainty: I never came close to entering his backyard," Dale wrote in the Star.

Agitated Toronto mayor confronts reporter outside home - Toronto - CBC News


Oh wow... what a complete douche..

Rob Ford threatens media blackout unless Star removes reporter from city hall beat | News | National Post

Mayor Rob Ford is demanding the Toronto Star remove reporter Daniel Dale from the city hall beat after a Wednesday night confrontation near the mayor’s home and says he won’t talk to any other reporters if Dale is around.

“I will not be talking to any reporters if he’s part of that scrum. They have to take him out of City Hall,” Ford said on The John Oakley Show on AM640 Thursday morning.

 

[Locutus]

It's all speculation dude. We have the 'word' of two guys against one. Far as I know nobody has bothered to interview the good samaritan nosey neighbor. Maybe the lad was even leaning over the fence. We don't know as yet.

Did anyone bother to make a copy of the cameras' pics? I would have.

Anywho, what if it turns out the wee paparazzi lad was actually up on his little brick taking pics of Robbies' backyard? It'll be rich. :lol:

 

[mentalfloss]

I doubt Ford will actually release any "evidence", but here's the reporter's testimony. It's pretty thorough, whereas Ford's was just a complete troll on the Star and lecturing us on how he's going to boycott the media.

I arrived sometime after 7:30 p.m. I walked around the parkland toward the mayor’s property. I took note of the trees, then, standing perhaps 10 metres from his wooden backyard fence, emailed an additional two sentences to my editor at 7:47. My phone died as I tried to snap photos of the trees and the fencing. I’m still not sure if the parcel I was standing on is the parcel Ford is looking to acquire, but I can say this with certainty: I never came close to entering his backyard.

Moments after my phone died, the mayor appeared, wearing a white campaign t-shirt, at the sole entrance and exit to the parcel of property; he had walked around from the front of his house. He appeared extremely agitated.

“Hey buddy,” he yelled. “What are you doing? Are you spying on me? Are you spying on me? Are you spying on me?”

I shouted, astonished, that I was not – that I was writing about his attempt to buy TRCA land. He began to approach me at a brisk walk, asking again, at an escalating volume, if I was spying. I continued to plead that I was writing about the land.

At some point, perhaps 10 or 15 seconds into the encounter, he cocked his fist near his head and began charging at me at a full run. I began pleading with him, as loud as I could, with my hands up, for him to stop. I yelled, at the top of my lungs, something like, “Mayor Ford, I’m writing about the land! I’m just looking at the land! You’re trying to buy the TRCA land!”

Instinctually, I also reached into my pocket to grab my dead phone. I then fiddled with my voice recorder, trying fruitlessly to turn it on so that I would have a recording of any physical violence.

At some point, perhaps two metres away from me, the mayor did stop moving toward me, but his face remained menacing, and he continued to cock his fist and shake it. “Drop your phone!” he demanded, shouting louder than I have ever heard him. “Drop your phone! Drop your phone now!”

Every time I tried to sidestep him to escape, he moved with me and yelled at me again to drop my phone. I became more frightened than I can remember; after two or three attempts to dart away, I threw my phone and my recorder down on the grass, yelled that he could take them, and ran.

When I reached the park’s parking lot, a fair distance away, I approached two young men who were sitting in a car, asking them to use their phone. The mayor, looking in our direction, continued to shout, and I ran to my car and drove away.

Toronto News: Daniel Dale on what happened near the mayor

 

[Locutus]

Star and Star fans be mad eh. :lol:

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

Well obviously the reporter is smart enough to lie enough to cover up his trespassing. He wanted to get the better shot and got caught red handed. Now to save his job and his hope of a future job he must lie.

WTF was he doing there in the first place? There was once a time when the Star would not be on the same level as the National Enquirer.

 

[Locutus]

Exactly.

And from NOW magazine of all publications to come to Fords' defense:


Did the Star overstep its bounds going to the mayor’s property at dusk?
By Joshua Errett


If anyone – member of the media or not – is considering coming to the edge of my property at dusk to take cell phone photographs, he or she can expect a confrontation.


A confrontation probably similar to the one Toronto Star reporter Daniel Dale faced when he went to the periphery of Rob Ford’s estate on Wednesday. (I don’t have any campaign shirts, so that detail might change.)


That’s another way of saying I think Ford did what any reasonable person would do in that situation.


Whether or not Dale was on Ford’s actual property is immaterial to me. It may be crucial in the court of law, but in the court of public opinion, Ford was (for once) in the right.


Anyway you look at it, there was a man in the partially wooded area outside Ford's house. That right there is enough to investigate and, yes, I think become defensive. That Dale did not actually have his foot on the mayor’s property doesn’t matter. The perceived threat was there.


It’s true the Star went to the mayor’s house to add to an important story on Ford's attempted purchase of a parcel of land next to his property. But there are quite a few details here that don’t work in the newspaper's favour.


First. There was no reason to show up unannounced. This was not supposed to be “gotcha journalism.” Since it was legal and above board, the professional approach would be to let the mayor’s handlers know in advance.



Second. Does the Star not have photographers? Why is a reporter going to take a picture of a piece of land with a Blackberry late in the day in bad light? He could have gone during the day when the mayor wasn't home, or when he could be identified by neighbours as non-threatening. Makes me suspect he was trying to catch the mayor doing something untoward.


Third. If he was going there to take photos, why would he not charge his phone?


Fourth. If this event made a seasoned reporter “more frightened than [he] can remember”, as Dale so self-righteously recounted, perhaps he should be looking for a new line of work. Confrontations like this one can and do happen, especially when reporting on contentious issues with sometimes hostile subjects.


Of course I give credence to the argument that Ford is an elected official, held to high standards of behaviour and even higher levels of scrutiny, and he shouldn’t have personally confronted Dale. Or that he should’ve recognized Dale from City Hall, and that he was doing a legitimate story, and brushed it off.


But again, imagine someone creeping around your house at sunset, looking into your yard. What would you do?


Rob Ford versus Daniel Dale | NOW Magazine

 

[mentalfloss]

He was there to report a story on the property that Ford was going to buy.

There's nothing wrong with that.

Get Rob Ford a security detail already. For everyone’s sake

At the risk of stating the obvious, neither party to the bizarre confrontation between Toronto Mayor Rob Ford and a Toronto Star reporter has come out of the incident looking particularly good. For those who have somehow failed to hear about it, the brief summary is this: The Mayor recently asked to purchase a small piece of publicly owned land near his backyard, ostensibly to build a better security fence (though he’s also claimed since the incident that he just wanted a bigger backyard for his kids). A Toronto Star reporter travelled to the Mayor’s home to check out the parcel of public property, and took some photos of the Mayor’s fence while standing on the public property. A neighbour of Ford saw this, told the Mayor, and Ford ran out shouting and waving a clenched fist. The reporter threw down his equipment and ran.

The Star and the Mayor have a long-running feud. And the Mayor has had security incidents at his home before, including one that led to an arrest. There have been assorted death threats. With all of that in mind, the Star probably should have reconsidered its plan to send a reporter, at night, to walk the fence of the Mayor’s private home. The telling point here isn’t that the Mayor blew a gasket — he does that sometimes — but that it was his neighbour who saw the reporter taking photos and raised the alarm. The Toronto Star might be able to convince people that the Mayor lost his cool and overreacted. But the fact that other people, who aren’t public figures and aren’t locked in a feud with their paper, also found the reporter’s presence disturbing is something that the Star should consider. It’s unlikely they’re the mood to now, having battened down all the hatches, but going forward, guys — if old men in their homes see your reporter and are alarmed by his presence, that might be a sign you’re being a tad aggressive.

Speaking of aggressive, there’s the Mayor’s response. The reporter’s presence may have been provocative, rude and unexpected. But no one has suggested that he was on the Mayor’s property. Even the Mayor himself has conceded that when he found the reporter, he was five metres from his property line. If the reporter was taking photos of the Mayor’s property, Ford could perhaps claim that his privacy was being violated. But certainly not that his family was in imminent danger. He should have phoned the police and waited for help. He’s the Mayor of Toronto. Help would have come quickly — far more quickly than the rest of us can count on.

Instead, he raced outside and initiated a confrontation. He claims he didn’t realize it was a Toronto Star reporter until they were face to face. Up until that moment, it could have been anyone. Ford was being reckless, putting himself in danger, by charging out there. The reporter’s recounting of the incident portrays him as a crazy man, and Ford himself has admitted to being very upset during the confrontation. I think a lot of people would understand why he was upset. But even when under pressure, we need to use our heads. Unless in danger, stay put, gather your family in a safe place and call for help. If your property has actually been invaded, that’s different. But it wasn’t, and everyone is clear on that.

The time has come, however, to accept that certain media outlets (not limited to the Star, but clearly including it) are willing to push the envelope when it comes to covering the Mayor and his personal matters. And we must also grant (not that it’s too hard to grasp) that Mayor Ford himself is unpredictable and doesn’t always respond well under pressure. He’s as likely to escalate an irritant into a crises as he is defuse a situation. Enough is enough. It’s time for Ford to be assigned a police protection unit.

Such units exist. They are trained and already on the Toronto Police Service’s payroll. They’re generally used when celebrities or dignitaries come to town, but would do just fine watching over the Mayor. Ford will hate the idea, of course — he’ll consider it a waste of a police officer. Too bad. He can’t keep playing the “I was protecting my family” victim card and then refuse police help when it’s available. If ever there’s a real threat, Ford — like any other father — would kick themselves if they found themselves alone when there could have been an armed officer of the law there with them.

It would be equally helpful for minor situations, too. Imagine how last night would have gone had a police officer been present. The neighbour would have told the officer. The officer would have gone around the house, found the reporter, and kept their cool. The reporter would have faced a few tough and awkward questions, and probably would have been moved-along by the cop in the end. But that would have been it. No confrontation, no equipment discarded in terror, no media freakout. Frankly, with a police escort on hand, the Star may have decided to approach the story in a more mature manner from the outset, such as, “Hi, there, officer, I’m a reporter and I’m just hear to photograph that piece of land there for a story on Ford’s plans to buy it.” No problem. No story.

Mayor Ford is going to keep being provoked. And he’s going to keep blowing his top. Both of those facts are unfortunate. But they are facts. It’s time to diffuse the situation. Get Ford a security detail.

http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com...a-security-detail-already-for-everyones-sake/

 

[Locutus]

Well obviously the reporter is smart enough to lie enough to cover up his trespassing. He wanted to get the better shot and got caught red handed. Now to save his job and his hope of a future job he must lie.

WTF was he doing there in the first place? There was once a time when the Star would not be on the same level as the National Enquirer.

The 4 points in the NOW piece share and address those concerns too. It's a gem. ;-)


Seems our little buddy is a bobber. :lol:

After that incident, the mayor's brother Coun. Doug Ford called for more security around his house.

He also told told 1010 Newstalk Radio security cameras captured the incident, and the images clearly show the the reporter's head "bobbing" over the fence.


"Police have seen it," said Ford.


Rob Ford wants Star reporter out of city hall - Toronto - CBC News

 

[mentalfloss]

It's funny that the right are quick to jump on issues of political correctness, but have no problem jumping on a "head bobber" that didn't actually commit any offense. :lol:

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

It's funny that the right are quick to jump on issues of political correctness, but have no problem jumping on a "head bobber" that didn't actually commit any offense. :lol:

Both are jumped on both because both are issues of stupidity.

 

[Locutus]

Unless there was a knot hole or young Daniel was staining Rob's fence, this video tape could be very interesting.

Either way, his story doesn't have the same hutzpah as it did in the wee hours.

 

[mentalfloss]

Unless there was a knot hole or young Daniel was staining Rob's fence, this video tape could be very interesting.

Either way, his story doesn't have the same hutzpah as it did in the wee hours.

The guy will be just fine and people will realize that Ford didn't have to trample after him like a Gorilla on steroids.

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

The guy will be just fine and people will realize that Ford didn't have to trample after him like a Gorilla on steroids.

What would you do if you found some asshole hanging over your back fence after dark?

 

[Locutus]

:lol:

 

[mentalfloss]

What would you do if you found some asshole hanging over your back fence after dark?

My back fence isn't wood and clears out into the forest so people do walk by and look at our backyard all the time. But, yea, I usually pack my .49, strap on a helmet and rush 'em. :lol:

 

[Locutus]

:lol:

 

[Retired_Can_Soldier]

Reporter denies Toronto mayor's trespass accusation | CTV News

Ford has cried wolf enough times that I highly doubt the reporter was actually trespassing on his property.

So was there a coffee house next door? Maybe a breaking story in the neighborhood? Coincidence I guess?

Or could it be that The Star is turning into The National Enquirer?

Have they retracted the story in which they alleged that he abused a kid on the football team he coached yet?

Hmmmmm....