MSNBC correspondent Shaquille Brewster found himself battling far more than the elements during a recent report on Hurricane Ida.
While covering the effects of Hurricane Ida live from Gulfport, Missisippi Brewster found himself confronted by a White man who demanded Brewster report the news "accurately."
Brewster was in the middle of reporting some good news in the wake of the damaging hurricane—mail delivery in Gulfport had resumed—when a white truck was seen pulling up behind Brewster.
The truck's driver, a White man, then emerged from from the truck and began running toward Brewster, who managed to remain calm and focused, even reporting on the "random person" running up behind him.
As the White man demanded they report news "accurately", Brewster calmly moved away saying "we deal with some people every once in a while."
But despite his best efforts to continue reporting on the damage Hurricane Ida brought to Gulfport, Brewster was distracted by the White man who could still be heard off camera yelling at Brewster and his camera man.
Finally, Brewster sent his report back to the news room and anchor Craig Melvin, declaring they had a "person who needs help right now."
But just before the camera cut back to Melvin, the White man was seen getting inches from Brewster's face, once again yelling "accurately," catching a visibly shocked Melvin completely off guard back in the newsroom.
"Hey! Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Um, we're going to check in with Shaq Brewster just to make sure all is well."
"There's a lot of crazy out there."
Melvin would later report on air Brewster was "just fine", but would express his disgust over the incident on Twitter.
Brewster also took to Twitter, confirming he and his team were fine, and thanking viewers for their concern.
Brewster later went into slightly more detail on Instagram, admitting the situation was scary, but he and his team could jump right back to work and even laugh about it afterwards.
"Overwhelmed by the love and support today after what was definitely the wildest moment I've had on air."
"Our team joked about it afterwards, but it was without a doubt as scary for us as it was for you all watching."
"While that one report was interrupted, we were right back up in the next hour and will continue reporting as we are here to do.
Viewers and Twitter followers were shocked and unsettled by the video, with several claiming it was a documented instance of blatant racism.
Others felt this man's anger and entitlement was one of the unfortunate repercussions of former President Donald Trump urging his supporters not to trust the media.
Others applauded Brewster for remaining professional during such a scary situation.
Brewster also got a shout out from MSNBC's president Rashida Jones, who declared Brewster was an "exceptional journalist."
"Like the consummate professional, he did not let someone intimidate him from doing his job. We're glad he and the team are safe, and we couldn't be more proud and supportive of their work."
The White man in question has yet to be identified, nor is it certain if he will face any charges.
