A press office staffer for Vice President Joe Biden forced a credentialed reporter from the University of Maryland\u2019s Philip Merrill College of Journalism to delete photos taken Tuesday at an event in the Washington, D.C. suburb of Rockville, Md.<\/p>\n
Vice President Joe Biden\u2019s press secretary, Kendra Barkoff, has since apologized for the thuggery.<\/p>\n
\u2026<\/p>\n
The reporter, Jeremy Barr, showed up to cover an event related to domestic violence. Biden, Attorney General Eric Holder and Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin were on hand.<\/p>\n
The trouble began when he unintentionally took a seat in an area that wasn\u2019t specifically designated for members of the press.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t see any demarcation that would have designated a press entrance versus a general entrance,\u201d Barr told Capital News Service.<\/p>\n
Once the event started, Barr said, he snapped a few photos of each speaker.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople a few rows in front of me were also taking photos,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
When the event ended, Biden press staffer Dana Rosenzweig questioned Barr about his photos, according to the New York Daily News.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said, \u2018I need to see your camera right now,\u2019\u201d Barr told CNS.<\/p>\n
\u201cI assumed that I\u2019d violated a protocol,\u201d the student reporter added. \u201cI gave her the benefit of the doubt that she was following proper procedures.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rosenzweig\u2019s rationale was that Barr\u2019s presence in an area of the crowd that wasn\u2019t designated specifically for the press gave him an \u201cunfair advantage\u201d over other nearby media representatives at the event.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s unclear what this advantage could have been.<\/p>\n
Biden\u2019s staffer then made Barr delete all the photos from his camera. She watched him the whole time to make sure he obeyed. She also scrutinized his iPhone to confirm that he didn\u2019t save any photos.<\/p>\n
Rosenzweig wasn\u2019t done violating Barr\u2019s rights just yet. She told him to wait while she found her boss. After about 10 minutes, the staffer told Barr she was terribly sorry, and allowed him to leave.<\/p>\n