Marjorie Taylor Greene attacked me for wearing a mask. What she did next was even worse

In October 2023, San Francisco Chronicle reporter Shira Stein interviewed California Senator Alex Padilla. She wore a mask during the interview. Later, Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene shared a video online mocking Stein  not for what she asked, but for simply wearing the mask.

This kind of thing wasn’t new for Greene. She’s known for being combative, especially with journalists and even other members of Congress. In the past, she’s made fun of someone’s eyelashes, told a reporter to “go back to your country,” and once chased Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez through the halls of Congress yelling at her.

Still, Stein was surprised by how fast a normal conversation with Greene turned hostile.

On April 8, after a congressional hearing, Stein joined a group of reporters speaking with Greene. As usual, Stein wore a mask  something she does for her health. When Stein tried to ask Greene a question about how federal real estate might learn from San Francisco’s Presidio Trust (a government-supported program that pays for itself), Greene cut her off before she could even finish the question.

“That’s exactly the kind of waste Americans are tired of!” Greene snapped, criticizing the Presidio for being an expensive property that doesn’t deserve government support. She blamed this kind of spending for the country’s national debt.

Then, Greene’s staff started recording. In the video, Greene turned the interaction into a personal attack, calling Stein out for wearing a mask and linking her to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, claiming Pelosi wanted to spend $200 million more on the Presidio. Greene posted the video to social media where it was viewed by millions of people.

But that’s not where it ended. After the cameras stopped, Stein told Greene she wears a mask because she’s immunocompromised and had a stroke in 2022  her health is at risk if she gets sick. Greene apologized and said she respected that.

But her followers never saw that part. The video she posted only showed the confrontation  not her apology or Stein’s reason for wearing the mask.

This wasn’t the first time Stein had been targeted. Just a few weeks earlier, on March 26, President Donald Trump also called her out for wearing a mask, doing so in front of dozens of reporters and a live TV audience. That clip, too, went viral.

While both Greene and Trump singled her out for political points  knowing their supporters often criticize mask-wearing  there was a key difference: Trump joked, but still let Stein ask her question. Greene didn’t even give her the chance. Yet both of them shared the clips online, exposing Stein to a flood of harassment and mockery.

What’s happening to reporters like Stein isn’t just about rude moments or viral videos. It’s part of a larger, more worrying trend.

In many parts of the world, it’s common for journalists to be threatened or discredited. Now, it’s happening more and more in the U.S., especially to reporters who challenge powerful people. These attacks are meant to intimidate journalists, undermine public trust in the press, and control what people believe.

Bruce Shapiro, who leads Columbia University’s Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma, explained it this way: Journalism helps society understand what’s going on. If reporters are silenced or pushed out, it’s not just about controlling headlines — it’s about controlling how Americans think.

And Greene’s attack isn’t an isolated case. Back in 2015, at the start of Trump’s political rise, Univision reporter Jorge Ramos was physically removed from a press event. That was an early sign of a growing hostility toward the press, a hostility that’s now become part of American political culture especially in MAGA circles.

The danger isn’t just rude comments. In early April, Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin even joked that fake news could be stopped if people could use violence  even murder  to settle disputes. He later claimed he was kidding, but the remark hit a nerve.

Shapiro said that today, many reporters across the U.S. are being shouted at, harassed, and targeted  not just the big-name network journalists, but also local reporters covering school boards or city council meetings.

It’s no longer just “don’t trust the media.” It’s about turning attacks on the press into a kind of spectacle  entertainment for political followers, even if it risks real harm to journalists and the truth itself.

By posting videos where they insult reporters, politicians like Greene and Trump aren’t just trying to get attention. They’re working to damage trust in science, facts, and public health  like mocking someone for wearing a mask. They’re also trying to strip credibility from the press so they can shape the story however they want.

Even when Greene learned Stein wore the mask for medical reasons  and seemed to understand  she still posted the video. That tells us it wasn’t about the facts. It was about using her platform to stir outrage and rally her base.

In the end, the goal isn’t just to humiliate a reporter. It’s to convince the public that only certain voices  theirs  can be trusted.