Danish reporter Rasmus Tantholdt got a rather rude welcome to Qatar, and it was all captured during a live broadcast.
Tantholdt was on the air reporting for Denmark’s TV2 when he was approached by a golf cart full of on-site security. They were not there to wish him a pleasant evening.
“We are live on Danish television,” Tantholdt tells the officials, with one going straight for his colleague’s camera.
“You invited the whole world to come here, why can’t we film? It’s a public place,” he adds.
As he attempts to smooth things over by showing his accreditation, Tantholdt accuses the officials of trying to break his camera.
“You can break the camera, you want to break it? You are threatening us by smashing the camera?”
We now got an apology from Qatar International Media Office and from Qatar Supreme Commitee.
This is what happened when we were broadcasting live for @tv2nyhederne from a roundabout today in Doha. But will it happen to other media as well? #FIFAWorldCupQatar2022 pic.twitter.com/NSJj50kLql— Rasmus Tantholdt TV2 (@RasmusTantholdt) November 15, 2022
Tantholdt said he did eventually receive an apology, with Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy releasing a statement saying he and his crew were “mistakenly interrupted.”
“Upon inspection of the crew’s valid tournament accreditation and filming permit, an apology was made to the broadcaster by on-site security before the crew resumed their activity,” a statement said.
The World Cup organizing committee also said they spoke to Tantholdt and “issued an advisory to all entities to respect the filming permits in place for the tournament.”
Still, it’s an inauspicious start for a tournament filled with questions over transparency.
Last month the Qatari government issued a host of restrictions over filming that, as a representative from a human rights organization told The Guardian, could have a “severe chilling effect” on media coverage.
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