In a disheartening turn of events this past weekend, a young sports journalist in Oregon found herself in a distressing situation. During a live broadcast, Olivia Cleary, a reporter for the ABC affiliate KEZI in Eugene, faced an unexpected and disruptive encounter with rowdy college students.
Cleary was on assignment in Corvallis, covering a football matchup between Oregon State University and Lafayette University. As the anticipation built for the Saturday game, a group of college-aged men clad in Oregon State attire gathered behind her, seemingly ready to make their presence known.
As Cleary began her live report, the group of millennials wasted no time in creating chaos. They screamed loudly, thrust their faces and arms into the camera’s view, and generally acted out in an attempt to derail her broadcast at Reser Stadium.
The situation took a particularly unpleasant turn when one individual, identified by a bystander as being 22 years old, persistently yelled the phrase “Six Seven” into Cleary’s ear. This was a reference to a popular internet meme, and his behavior was both obnoxious and relentless.
Despite the distraction, Cleary maintained her professionalism, smiling and trying to focus on her reporting. However, as the segment came to a close, the emotional toll of the harassment was evident, and she appeared visibly upset.
All the while, Cleary smiled and continued to report on the happenings of the evening – until, at the end, her emotions appeared to get the better of her.
‘You can literally see a tear in her eye towards the end,’ one X user wrote, adding: ‘This is f***ing disgusting.’
KEZI sports reporter Olivia Cleary was left in tears by boorish Oregon State fans this weekend
The young men shoved their faces in the camera and screamed in her face while she spoke
She addressed the situation the following day in a post to X: ‘I’m aware of the video circulating and want to thank everyone for the support!
‘At the start of my live shot, fans were kind and added a fun element to my coverage. As it went on, a few fans stuck around and things got a little out of hand which is what you saw.
‘For the most part, Beaver Nation has been very welcoming to me. Live TV is unpredictable and sometimes you have to roll with it!’
On social media, some even gave a very bold solution for the youths, claiming they should be sent for conscription, comparing them to a photo of army men a similar age back in the 1930s and 40s.
One social media user compared the students to men of a similar age back in the 30s and 40s
Cleary took to social media in the aftermath to address the incident and reassure her fans
While Cleary was graceful, sports fans and those who work in the industry were quick to defend her and chastise the men for their boorish behavior.
‘The KEZI reporter trying to do her job showed tremendous poise and composure in this live shot at Oregon State. Good on @LivCleary. The idiots around her did not. SMH,’ wrote Oregon sports columnist John Canzano.
Oregon State sports writer Ryan Harlan commented, ‘That’s horrible – do better Beaver Nation.’
Another Oregon sports reporter, Dylan Anderman, recalled a time he went to Reser during a game against Utah years ago when ‘some kid put his phone right infront of the camera and it said “what the f%*! is a Ute [Utah’s mascot and a Native American tribe]” just ridiculous behavior from 20 year olds. Shoutout Olivia for staying poised.’
The journalist managed to stay composed to finish her live shot despite the shouts around her
Mike Asti, a sports editor and radio host in Pittsburgh and West Virginia, wrote, ‘What’s sad is these guys unfortunately think they’re so cool…when in reality, there’s nothing cool about acting like this at all. Props to this reporter for how well she handheld these idiots. It shouldn’t be hard to not do this to someone doing her job.’
One Oregon State fan commented, ‘You handled it like a pro. I’m sorry that you had to deal with that.’
Ben Peck, a sports reporter in Texas, posted about the obnoxious ‘Six Seven’ fan, saying, ‘His professor should let @LivCleary scream “SIX SEVENNNN” in his face the whole time he takes his next exam.’
Those Oregon State fans may have been a miserable bunch off the field because of how miserable their football team is on the field.
The Beavers opened their season going 0-7 and fired head coach Trent Bray last week. They only got their first win of the season against Lafayette, an FCS school, beating them 45-13.
