Anthony Albanese called out for missing a crucial detail about the rubber bullet shooting of an Aussie reporter in the LA riots
Anthony Albanese has been called out for getting a crucial detail wrong about an Australian reporter shot with a rubber bullet in the Los Angeles riots.
US correspondent for Nine Lauren Tomasi was performing a live cross about the mass protests in the city on Sunday evening, local time, when a police officer could be seen levelling a gun at her in the background.
The officer opened fire at close range, while Tomasi doubled over in pain.
Nine later confirmed she was 'left sore but otherwise unharmed' by the shot.
The apparently deliberate shooting sparked global headlines and criticism of heavy-handed tactics by the LAPD.
Anthony Albanese condemned the 'targeted' incident on Wednesday, describing Tomasi as 'clearly identified as media' in Nine's footage.
'There's no ambiguity. She wasn't wearing a trackie, she was wearing a helmet and something that identified her as media,' Albanese told the National Press Club.
But Aussies were quick to hit back at the prime minister's comments, pointing out that Tomasi had not been wearing a helmet or any clothing that identified her as a Nine reporter at the time of the shooting.
'Albo is lying about the situation. She wasn't wearing anything to protect herself or identify herself,' one said.
'So who's fault is it then if she's not wearing a helmet or vest and in the middle of a protest?' a second asked.
Another agreed that Tomasi was 'clearly not identified as media'.
'She put herself in a dangerous position. Common sense seems to be lost by some.'
'Isn't that what journalists do to show what's happening, rather than sit in a sanitised white house press room?' another said.
'If she's not identified as a journalist then she leaves herself open to being just another blogger and an unofficial news source and part of the protest not following direct orders from the law enforcement,' a fifth said.
Another Aussie suggested police might have mistaken Tomasi for a 'social media influencer'.
But some said it should have been obvious that Tomasi was a reporter, given that she was holding a microphone and being filmed by a cameraman.
Australian diplomats have raised the incident with their US counterparts, and Albanese has not ruled out raising it when he meets Donald Trump next week on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Canada.
A day after Tomasi was shot with the rubber bullet, an ABC correspondent was tear-gassed while also reporting on the riots.
Protesters in LA are marching against Trump's crackdown on illegal migrants and raids by ICE, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Horrifying scenes showed cars erupting into flames as rioters created blockades to grind Downtown Los Angeles to a complete halt.
On Monday local time (Tuesday AEST), Trump sent 700 marines to join 2,000 of national guard troops in the city.
He also threatened to arrest California's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, for resisting the federal crackdown.
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