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Man who kissed a reporter on live TV is facing harassment charges

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A man has been charged with harassment with physical contact after kissing a Louisville TV reporter during a live shot.

  • WAVE reporter Sara Rivest was reporting live about the city’s Bourbon and Beyond festival Friday, Sept. 20, 2019, when a trio of men interrupted her live shot.
  • They disappeared briefly but then one of them forces his way into frame and kisses Rivest on the cheek
  • “Oookay,” she says, pulling away from the unwelcome kisser. “OK, that was not appropriate,” she adds. “Let’s just go to the story.”
  • After a full taped report and she tosses back to the studio, an anchor asks if she is OK and “free from the kissing bandit.”
  • He also points out there’s a police officer nearby and even, probably jokingly, offers to come down and help her out.
  • Police later identified the alleged kisser as Eric Goodman, who is now facing a misdemeanor charge for what was likely meant as a joke.
  • Rivert herself has appeared on air since the incident addressing the issue and how uncomfortable in made her.
  • For his part, Goodman also wrote Rivert an apology letter, which she read on air.

  • Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident — multiple reporters have been kissed, hugged or other accosted while doing live shots.
  • While many of the incidents are probably meant to be harmless (or the result of too much alcohol), they nonetheless are clear cases of unwanted contact and could even become dangerous for the reporter, crew and others in the area.
  • The most infamous incident of how a simple live shot can turn deadly was when WDBJ reporter Alison Parker and her videographer Adam Ward were shot on live TV by a Vester Lee Flanagan II, a former employee of the station.
  • TV crews are also targeted with verbal and physical threats due to an increasingly hostile environment toward journalists.
  • In addition, TV crews can also be in danger because they often carry expensive equipment with them — and it’s also not uncommon for news vehicles to be broken into or have items taken from them.
  • Many TV stations also now send reporters out alone to do live shots — requiring them to “lock down” a camera — so there’s not aways someone there to help defend the reporter if a situation becomes uncomfortable or dangerous.

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