ESPN has suspended reporter Britt McHenry for a week after a video of her lashing out at a towing company clerk was leaked online and went viral.

Josh Krulewitz, a spokesperson for the cable and satellite sports station, announced on Twitter that McHenry will be going off the air for an entire week. The announcement comes just hours after the Stetson University journalism graduate apologized to the public about her behavior but not, notably, to Gina Michelle, an Advanced Towing clerk in Arlington, Virginia, where McHenry's car was towed.

The video shows McHenry giving the clerk a full dressing down, even as she was warned that she is being recorded by the company's CCTV camera. The reporter's tirade went from somewhat understandable, when she threatened to sue the company, known in Arlington for its shady business practices, to questionable, when she uses her job at ESPN to scare the woman, to downright reprehensible, when she addresses the woman's education, job, weight, and teeth to the entertainment of a friend who was with her.

"I'm in the news, sweetheart. I will f---ing sue this place," she starts off, before being informed that a camera was in the room and completely ignoring the warning.

The video appears to have been cut in a few places, and the whole exchange has not been uploading. However, some of McHenry's most objectionable gibes include the following:

"That's why I have a degree and you don't."

"I wouldn't work at a scumbag place like this. Makes my skin crawl even being here."

"Yep, that's all you care about, just taking people's money. With no education, no skill set. Just wanted to clarify that."

"Do you feel good about your job? So I could be a college dropout and do the same thing? Why, 'cause I have a brain and you don't."

"Maybe if I was missing some teeth they would hire me, huh?"

Gina Michelle, who has been quiet most of the time in the video apparently makes a comeback about McHenry's hair and the color of her roots, to which the reporter replies:

"Oh, like yours? 'Cause they look so stunning, 'Cause I'm on television and you're in a f---ing trailer, honey. Lose some weight, baby girl."

The exchange apparently took place on April 5, when McHenry's car was towed by Advanced Towing when she was eating at an Arlington restaurant. Gina Michelle, who got in touch with Busted Coverage, says she had been trying to contact local media about the video. While McHenry claims that her car was parked at the parking lot of the restaurant where she was eating, Gina Michelle says otherwise.

"She parked her car and came back two hours after the establishment closed (meaning she was not a customer the whole time) and insulted another woman's weight. Is this ok?" she says. "Bottom line is she got towed. She should not have left her car unattended in a private lot to patronize another bar. Be angry or upset, you don't insult someone's looks because you think you're above them."

Gina Michelle also shared some images of McHenry flipping the bird at the camera.

McHenry posted her apology on Twitter:

"In an intense and stressful moment, I allowed my emotions to get the best of me and said some insulting and regrettable things. As frustrated as I was, I should always choose to be respectful and take the high road. I am so sorry for my actions and will learn from this mistake."


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