A New York Times reporter claims he was bullied by a member of Def Jam’s Street Team.
The incident apparently happened on Firday in Manhattan, New York.
The reporter saw three men putting up posters for Rocko’s new album (which is entitled ‘Self Made’).
Whats involved in street promotion is building awareness for a partiuclar album throught posters and flyers. But according to the reporter, the threee men wre hanging up posters on lamp posts, which is public property and therefore illegal in the State Of New York.
He then proceeded to take pictures of the signs and this is what followed.
“After about two minutes, one man asked me why I was taking pictures. ‘Because what you’re doing is illegal,’ I replied. He answered, ‘Breaking cameras is illegal, too, but if you don’t stop taking pictures, I’ll break your camera.’ He modified ‘camera’ with an adjective I am not permitted to repeat here. I identified myself as a reporter from The Times. ‘I’ll break your camera,’ he said, using that adjective again, ‘and you can print that in your paper.’ I distinctly remember thinking, ‘No, I can’t.’ Then, rather than antagonize him further, I started taking pictures of the poster-covered scaffold pipes across Broadway. The approach came so swiftly, I cannot even say whether it was from in front or behind. But I do remember a furious face inches away from mine as the man said he had warned me not to take any more pictures. The next few minutes are — as they say — a blur. I was suddenly on my back on the sidewalk, near the curb, trying to hold on to my camera and fend off my assailant, with my right leg pressed against his chest.”
The reporter said that there were witnessess who say his camera was smashed to the ground. Fortunately because we live in such a great digital age, he was able to recover all the pictures from the memory card.
Aside from a bruised knee, the reporter had minor injuries and went on to say in his blog
“In the greater scheme of things, my quarrel isn’t with him, anyway. It’s with the suits who made the decision in the first place to undertake an illegal marketing campaign.
A spokesperson for Island Def Jam (rocko’s label) said it had “ceased this type of postering some time ago and had nothing to do with what transpired here.”
Here’s an eyewitness account who sent this email to the reporter
“I turned around and saw you falling backwards, raising your arms to defend yourself from the lad who was grappling with you. The kid was shouting something like, ‘Didn’t I tell you!’ From where I stood, it looked like he was pummeling you with his fists. I pulled out my cellphone with the intention of taking some video (for evidence, not for YouTube) but in the few seconds it took me to do that he had yanked your camera free and I remember the way he raised it up over his head before smashing it into the street. After smashing the camera, I remember him walking toward me while tearing up your notebook (don’t remember how/when he got his hands on that). He passed me, I saw you on the ground (uncertain how badly you might have been hurt) and that’s when I called 911″
Noone should get assulted over something like this.
Maybe They Were Both Thinking ‘Umma Do Me’.
Spotted @ Scratch’s blog
You can read the reporter’s view of the events here
