Jim Bunner waved to the camera, cellphone in one hand, KTTC-TV branded microphone in the other, his receding hairline bared to the Minnesota morning chill.

He could have been any other reporter standing outside the Rochester civic center Thursday, awaiting President Trump’s rally. At least, so it seemed in that particular shot.

“I’ve met people all the way from Mankato, from Iowa, from Eagle Lake, you name it,” Bunner said in his NBC news station’s Facebook Live feed. “They are excited for the fact the president of the United States is visiting Rochester. This is big! This ‘yuge,’ in the words of Donald Trump.”

The multimedia reporter might have been simply channeling the enthusiasm of the crowd – thousands of people lined all the way to the back of the civic center, most of them sporting “Make America Great Again” hats.

But just outside the camera frame – visible for a split second when it pulled back from Bunner’s face to pan around – his own bright red MAGA hat peeked out from his duffel bag.

KTTC-TV dismissed Bunner the next day, according to The Associated Press, after another reporter photographed him wearing the hat and posted it on Twitter. Caption: “Whyyyyy?”

While Bunner could not be reached for comment, KTTC new director Noel Sederstrom told BuzzFeed News, “We don’t allow our people to wear campaign clothing while on assignment.”

As BuzzFeed noted, Bunner’s publicly available social media feed was full of his political views – something that The Washington Post, The New York Times, Politico and many other new outlets discourage.

The news director told BuzzFeed that Bunner’s political views were not a factor in his dismissal. Wearing Trump campaign gear while on the job was.


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