Viral Video of Journalist Getting Hit By Car Sparks Conversation About Safety

In a video that has been seen over 1 million times on YouTube and garnered thousands of shares on Twitter, Tori Yorgey, a 25-year-old multimedia journalist with WSAZ-TV in Charleston, West Virginia was hit by a passing car last Wednesday evening while reporting on a water main break.

Yorgey surprisingly barely let the accident phase her, as she told the anchor “that’s live TV for you, but it’s all good.”

Sending multimedia journalists into the field alone is not uncommon. Stations used to transmit live signals by way of microwave or satellite, which requires a second set of hands. But with the advent of portable transmission packs, journalists can report live without a photographer. While her poise under pressure has received praise, the video has sparked a necessary and important conversation about the safety of journalists in the field. The use of “one man band” multimedia journalists in particular has come under fire. Many critics point out that while a solo multimedia journalist might save the news channel money, it ultimately places employees in unsafe conditions such as those depicted in the video.