Runner slaps female new reporter's bum on live TV

Fun runs are all about having a good time, trying to beat your PBs, and, most importantly, raising some money for charity. However, one male participant in Saturday's Savannah Bridge Run 10K has left a rather sour note on the event, after slapping a TV reporter’s bum live on air as she was reporting about the race.

Georgia station WSAV-TV was on-site for the race, with reporter Alex Bozarjian addressing the viewers as delighted joggers ran past and gestured at the camera. But one runner - wearing a hat and sunglasses overstepped the boundaries when he leaned down and smacked the Bozarjian's behind, leaving her visibly shocked and momentarily speechless.

Check out the disgraceful moment in the video below:

Despite the disturbing turn of events, Bozarjian was able to compose herself and continue with the broadcast.

One stunned viewer who watched the incident tweeted: "We watch @WSAV in our house every single morning. Their staff is like extended family to us. I'm furious about this."

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Alex Bozarjian has since responded to the incident, writing on Twitter: "To the man who smacked my butt on live TV this morning: You violated, objectified, and embarrassed me. No woman should EVER have to put up with this at work or anywhere!! Do better."

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Bozarjian's tweet has since been retweeted over 170,000 times at the time of this writing, and 'liked' more than 630,000 times.

Of course, this is far from the first time a female news reporter has been harassed on live TV:

Robert Wells, director of the Savannah Sports Council who organizes the charity run, responded to the reporter's tweet and vowed to find the runner, writing: "Alex, what happened today is 100% unacceptable. You have my assurance we will identify him".

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Caitlyn Penter, a journalist for North Carolina TV station WLOS, also tweeted out her support for Bozarjian, simply writing: "DO NOT TOUCH REPORTERS. Period."

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A representative from the Savannah Police Department has since told NBC News that authorities have spoken with Bozarjian regarding the incident, confirming that they will be supporting her. Department rep Keturah Greene said:

"All I can say is we have made contact with Alexandrea and we are definitely going to be working with her in any capacity on how she’d like to move forward with this incident."