The Hungarian journalist who tripped fleeing migrants insists she's 'not a heartless, racist, children-kicking camerawoman'

Petra Laszlo apologizes for tripping fleeing migrants

(Image credit: AFP/Getty Images)

published 11 September 2015

Earlier this week, Hungarian media outlet N1TV fired camerawoman Petra Laszlo after she was filmed tripping migrants fleeing the police:

On Thursday, Lazlo apologized in the conservative newspaper Magyar Nemzet. "I was scared as the crowd rushed toward me, and then something snapped in me," she explained. "I'm not a heartless, racist, children-kicking camerawoman," she added. "I do not deserve the political witch hunts against me, nor the smears or often the death threats. I'm just a woman, and now an unemployed mother of small children, who made a bad decision in a situation of panic. I am truly sorry."

You can try to ascertain Lazlo's level of panic in the video below. N1TV is allied with Hungary's far-right Jobbik party, The New York Times notes, which, along with Prime Minister Viktor Orban, has been vocally opposed to the massive influx of immigrants from Syria, Afghanistan, and other violence-torn regions. Peter Weber

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.