WATCH: Tommy Robinson embarrasses Sky News reporter
A journalist with Sky News wasn't aware of the charge Robinson was facing and also mistakenly asserted the trial would be decided by a jury.
Prior to making an appearance in court, independent reporter and activist Tommy Robinson was questioned by a reporter from Sky News who showed a stunning lack of knowledge about the case she was covering.
Robinson was at the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, where he was defending himself from a charge he received while attending a pro-Israel rally in November 2023.
In his capacity as a reporter, Robinson was covering the 100,000-person pro-Israel march when he was asked to leave by event organizers. Police eventually arrested Robinson, pepper spraying him in the process, and laying a charge for failing to comply with an order excluding him from the area of the march, the Metropolitan Police said, per BBC.
The Sky News reporter took issue with Robinson, who publishes news stories and documentaries on his website Urban Scoop, describing himself as a journalist.
“Most journalists don't have criminal convictions, though” the Sky reporter remarked to Robinson after he said more people trust him than legacy media outlets. “I've never been tried by a jury,” Robinson replied.
“You're about to be. You're about to have a trial,” she says. “If you knew your facts, you'd know there's no jury in there,” retorts Robinson.
After clarifying the trial was being heard by a judge, the Sky reporter then said this was “due to the severity of the alleged offence.”
Robinson asked the reporter what the offence was, only for her to recoil away from his microphone. “I'm bored now,” she responded, as she looked up the allegations against Robinson on her cellphone.
He then reminded the Sky reporter about a 2018 incident with the network, which saw an hour long interviewed shortened to an eight-minute segment painting Robinson in a negative light.
Journalist Tommy Robinson stands trial after attending protest against antisemitism
— Rebel News UK (@RebelNews_UK) April 22, 2024
Robinson was arrested, pepper sprayed, and banned from London by police in November after attending a pro-Israel demonstration.https://t.co/J57WLSS8nB
Robinson would release the full, unabridged interview on his own. Broadcasting regulator Ofcom then received several thousand complaints against Sky News following the interview's airing.
Rebel News Sheila Gunn Reid was in London covering the first day of the trial as it happened. As evidence was being presented, questions were raised as to whether the Met Police doctored their evidence against Robinson.
Robinson's defence has filed for a motion to dismiss as the trial enters its second day on Tuesday. If that fails, then the trial will continue for the remainder of the day.
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