Trump Volunteer Blocks Photographer, Plan Backfires as Photo of Incident Goes Viral

In an ironic turn of events, one man’s attempt to block coverage of a protest has had the opposite effect, after a photo of him covering a photographer’s lens went viral.

Associated Press (AP) photographer Evan Vucci, who has been covering President Trump’s rallies since 2016, was the one responsible for capturing the moment, which occurred in Evansville, Indiana. Having covered many rallies, Vucci told Time this incident wasn’t a frequent sight: 

We’re all just trying to do our job, which is to be fair and accurately document the President. When someone impedes you from doing your job, that’s something to be upset about.

Pictured in Vucci’s image is Reuters photojournalist Kevin Lamarque attempting to capture the moment Trump supporters spotted a protestor. That was when Nick Barbknecht, the campaign volunteer, reached out and used his hand to cover Lamarque’s lens. The effort was in vain, as not only did Lamarque end up getting a usable photo, but the incident has since made for a viral news story, appearing in Time, Huffington Post, Independent, and many other outlets.

Vucci says everyone was “happy [the moment] was captured.” Lamarque is quoted as saying that Barbknecht later apologized for his actions.

See how the hand-covered photo came out over at Time.

Lead image credit: Vlad Tchompalov via Unsplash.