Stay informed with LAist.
If you enjoyed this article, you’ll appreciate our daily newsletter, The LA Report. Begin your morning in less than 3 minutes with the 5 most urgent news stories every weekday.
At first light on January 7, 2021, I made my way to work at the U.S. Capitol.
The foul odor of tear gas invaded my lungs and its chemical remnants covered the floor of the Capitol basement. Almost every window was broken, creating heaps of glass and fragments of wood strewn across the elaborate tan tiles.
Many hours had gone by since the building was evacuated by law enforcement.
At that moment, I was 23 years old and employed in a rather unnoticed government position with a desk just steps away from the House chamber. My role is to ensure that the broadcast media is content while making certain everyone is compliant with the regulations.
I had formed connections with several reporters and was worried about what they had gone through the previous day.
Ordinarily, I should have been at my desk on January 6th. Nevertheless, due to COVID-19 guidelines, our small group was divided into two in the office for a few days, and we viewed events from home instead. Even though I wasn’t physically present, my recollections are still clear.
Then, on January 7, upon arriving at the Capitol, he discovered an enraged note pasted to the door: “Eliminate the media.”
That was the moment a significant change in my career transpired. On that day, I resolved that I would pursue becoming a member of the press at all costs rather than merely a custodian of the press.
set the scene
Multiple media outlets had established work areas in our Capitol offices. When I arrived that day, numerous individuals had covered the front door plates with signs from organizations like CNN and Fox News. By that point, one faction was already attempting to breach the space. This was an attempt to evade being targeted if protesters succeeded.
As a New York Times photographer discovered, that was significant.
Erin Schaff was attacked by a group of furious men after she was spotted working with media credentials. Her camera equipment was damaged and thrown to the ground, and her pass was taken.
“At that moment, I feared for my life and believed no one could intervene,” she reported in a 2021 article for the NYT.
I encountered several journalists who were covering the aftermath.
Some did not exit the Capitol building the day after the siege began. Many appeared visibly disturbed from facing targeted assaults, bear spray, and damaged equipment. As a seasoned Fox News reporter covering the events of January 6th later commented, they suddenly found themselves as war correspondents.
reporter’s memories
As I observed the aftermath and the reactions of the journalists, my apprehension and outrage took an unforeseen shift. I have never felt prouder to be in their company.
They disregarded evacuation orders, sheltered behind desks while engaging in live broadcasts, and essentially plunged directly into the chaos alone. Their commitment to the truth, to revealing what was genuinely happening, never faltered.
“This is our duty: We remain and report,” J. Scott Applewhite wrote for The Associated Press in 2022 regarding his experience capturing the armed confrontation on the House floor.
AP Photo: Police with firearms drawn observe as protesters attempt to breach the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) pic.twitter.com/HvUD6uXVJO
— Josh Frigerio (@JoshFrigerio) January 6, 2021
The reality they reported throughout the assault has only gained in significance since then, as elected officials, acquaintances, and family members question what transpired to this day. Nonetheless, as odd as it may seem, I experienced a sense of safety during the interview. It was genuine.
When I made the choice to abandon a secure government position in Washington, D.C., to pursue a career as a journalist, I was met with numerous inquiries. Why join a struggling industry that often appears politically reliable? That was the pride and sense of responsibility I discovered on January 7th. I not only had to value journalists, but I had to become one of them.
Four years later, I still grapple with accepting it all. Rather than fixating on what I cannot alter on Capitol Hill, I’m focusing on what I can accomplish here at home. Journalism is, after all, a profession. But I truly believe it’s a privilege, and I don’t mean that in a charitable way.
Journalism is a crucial component of the fragile balance of democracy, and January 6th revealed to me what is at stake. “Eliminate the media” was swiftly brushed aside, but the message persisted.
As I departed the Capitol that day, I sent a text to James Greenberg, a former political science professor at California State University, Northridge, expressing how frightened I was.
He consistently provided me with words of motivation.
“If you happen to glance up at the Statue of Liberty atop the (Capitol) dome, remember that she looks east, not west,” he wrote. “Since the Statue of Liberty faces east, she never witnesses the sunset, only the sunrise. That’s because the sun doesn’t truly set freely, it simply rises.”