Reporter Left Shocked After Young Boy Yells 'Alarming' Comment During Live Broadcast

A reporter was left completely stunned after a young boy shouted a disturbing and offensive phrase at her while she was in the middle of filming a news segment.

Michelle Mackey, who works as a journalist for CityNews in Toronto, Canada, was on location shooting a segment she described as a "feel-good" story. But the experience quickly took a turn she never saw coming.

While most reporters are used to some distractions or interruptions when filming out in public, what Mackey experienced that day caught her completely off guard.

The boy, who Mackey estimated was about eight or nine years old, yelled out a vulgar phrase that had once gone viral on social media—where people, usually men, would shout “fk her right in the p*y” at female reporters.

What made the situation even more upsetting was that the boy’s father was standing next to him and didn’t step in or correct his son’s behavior. In fact, he laughed it off.

Sharing the censored video of the moment on TikTok, Mackey wrote: "This was one of the most alarming things I've witnessed as a news reporter."

Michelle Mackey is a reporter for CityNews Toronto Mathew Tsang/WireImage

"What looked to be an 8 or 9-year-old boy yelled this at me, WITH HIS FATHER BY HIS SIDE. They proceeded to laugh and walk away."

"Out of respect for the child, I'm blurring their faces. Whether this is yelled at a man or woman, it perpetuates and normalizes misogyny. I thought this horrible trend was over."

Since then, Mackey has spoken more about what happened in an interview with TODAY.com to shed light on just how troubling the moment was.

"I haven't heard the phrase in a really long time. I've heard it before, but it's been years, and I was shocked to hear it again," the reporter shared as she reflected on what happened.

"When I looked over and saw that the boy said it, I was beyond disturbed. It looked to be an 8 or 9-year-old boy, and he was either with his dad or grandfather, and the two of them were just giggling. They were just laughing. They thought it was hilarious."

Mackey said she tried to approach them and have a conversation, but they just walked away without acknowledging her. She added: "I just wanted to be able to look that father and kid in the eye and say, 'Can you say that again to me, looking me in the eye as a human being?'"

The reporter gave the man and his son a very stern look afterwards @michellemackeytiktok/TikTok

She explained that hearing the phrase made her feel deeply uncomfortable, even saying it felt "violating." While she didn’t place full blame on the child, she was frustrated that the adult didn’t step in to correct the behavior.

Addressing the father directly, Mackey shared: "You probably are coming at this from a place of humor, and you probably think this is funny and not harmful, but I just hope you can consider the words that came out of your mouth and really think about what those words mean."

"And just ask yourself... would you look in the eye of someone you love and say that to them?"