A video went viral of a journalist in
Santa Monica, California, holding a power tool near a building destroyed by looters and posing for an Instagram photo before quickly jumping back in a car to drive away. Online commenters were angry that the woman appeared to be pretending to help for the sake of a photo op.
The woman’s identity was
confirmed by New York Times journalist Taylor Lorenz as Fiona Moriarty-McLaughlin, an intern with the Washington Examiner.
In the video, after posing with the construction worker, she hands him back his power tool and says, “Thank you so much” before walking away. Referring to the young man standing on the sidewalk taking her photo, she says, “Boyfriends of Instagram!”
Fiona Moriarty-McLaughlin, a reporter with the Washington Examiner, was caught posing to help rebuild a building destroyed by looters on Instagram.
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