The student journalist who calmly but fervently asserted his First Amendment right to photograph a protest at the University of Missouri has been recognized with a new award from a prominent journalism advocacy organization.
The “First Amendment Defender Award,” awarded by the Radio Television Digital News Association, celebrates “an individual or organization that takes a public stand in support of press freedom.” Here’s what the association said about Tim Tai, a senior journalism major at the University of Missouri who stood his ground earlier this year while covering tumult at Mizzou for ESPN:
While covering student protests at the University of Missouri in the fall of 2015, overnight Tim Tai became one of the most visible journalists in America. As seen in a viral video, Tai was confronted by university students, faculty and staff, threatening him with violence if he did not abandon his efforts to cover the protests. Instead, he stood his ground and patiently asserted his First Amendment right to stand in a public place and report on the events around him.
This isn’t the first accolade to come Tai’s way. The photographer’s work has already been recognized by the Associated Collegiate Press and the Hearst Journalism Awards, according to his website.
In an interview with Poynter in November, Tai called his standoff with protesters, which was captured by photographer Mark Schierbecker, “a moment of strong passion.” He never felt endangered during the exchange, he said.
“I expected to be blocked. I just tried to do my job and move on,” he added. “I was immediately horrified. I stood my ground…Now I am in a weird place…I never intended for this to be about me. I don’t want to be a distraction from the protest story.”
