ANN ARBOR, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – A reporter who works for OutKick, a Fox News parent company website, said he was harassed to the point he had to call the police while covering a high school volleyball match that involved an Ann Arbor high school transgender athlete.
Dan Zaksheske, a reporter for OutKick, wrote a story about his experience this week covering a male playing on the Ann Arbor Skyline high school girls volleyball team. Zaksheske said Ann Arbor Skyline High School Principal Casey Elmore shadowed him throughout the match. Zaksheske said he moved around to several locations and Elmore followed him. He posted a video of Elmore walking towards him at the event.
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OutKick is owned by Fox Corporation. The news site broke the story that Ann Arbor Skyline has a boy playing on the girls team. It reported back in September that the district “may be hiding” the trans athlete on the girls volleyball team.
What happened?
Here’s the chronology of how the events transpired, according to Zaksheske.
Zaksheske said he was approached by angry adults on Wednesday while covering the first day of the two-day regional tournament hosted by the Ann Arbor Public Schools.
The next day, he returned for the second day’s match between Ann Arbor Skyline high school and Dexter. Zaksheske was denied media credentials by the Michigan High School Athletic Association so he had to purchase tickets to get into the gym.
He was in the stands interviewing adults supporting Dexter and soon Skyline Principal Elmore stood right next to him as he was interviewing fans.
Zaksheske said he asked Elmore who she was and she identified herself only as a principal of Skyline but wouldn’t give her name. He later identified her by comparing pictures he took of her at the event that matched the district’s website.
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Next, Zaksheske said Elmore refused to shake his hand when he introduced himself and offered it. Zaksheske said he then went to other sections of the gym and about a half dozen different locations and Elmore followed him.
Yelling from fans.
In addition, Zaksheske said a man stood eight inches behind him and yelled encouragement for the Ann Arbor team but did so by yelling right into Zaksheske’s ear. The unidentified man did it a half dozen times before Zaksheske took a selfie to document it. That same man also implied loud enough for others to hear that Zaksheske was “creepy.”
“You’re just here watching a bunch of high school girls, huh? Boy, that sounds pretty creepy,” Zaksheske quoted the man as saying.
Zaksheske said that Principal Elmore observed this interaction about eight feet away and did not act to stop it.
The unidentified man wore a shirt that said, “May you have the confidence of a mediocre white man.”
Official responses.
The Ann Arbor Public Schools didn’t respond to an email seeking comment, and the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) referred questions to the district and police.
The Ann Arbor police told Michigan News Source it escorted Zaksheske to his car after the match when the reporter asked for assistance.
