Conservative journalist Frank Scales was hospitalized Saturday after being sprayed with an unknown substance while reporting on anti-ICE protests in Center City Philadelphia.
Scales, known for conducting man-on-the-street interviews, had been covering demonstrations near City Hall on Friday night.
During the protests, he was repeatedly threatened by leftists as he attempted to ask questions.
One individual, who identified himself as “Big John,” warned Scales that he would assault him if he did not leave the area.
“Are you threatening me?” Scales asked on camera.
“Absolutely,” the individual responded, adding a profane rant in which he said he did not care about laws, police, or jail.
The leftist continued by claiming he would “die for my causes.”
WATCH:
A group of protesters in Philadelphia marched in opposition of ICE and in support of the woman who was fatally shot in Minnesota while obstructing an ICE operation. My questions were met with direct threats of violence by a short man named “Big John” who was rolling a blunt,… pic.twitter.com/2qCpjebryb
— SurgePhilly (@Surge_Philly) January 10, 2026
Despite the hostile encounter, Scales returned Saturday morning as a sizable crowd again gathered at City Hall.
Protesters later marched to a nearby federal detention facility, calling for the release of inmates.
When asked where they were from, several demonstrators told Scales they had traveled from neighboring New Jersey.
In a follow-up video posted later that day, Scales told viewers he was on his way to a hospital after being sprayed by a protester with an unknown substance.
“So we just got — we were at the protest, and somebody maced us. Somebody did something,” Scales said.
“I gotta go get my eyes checked and rinsed out.”
He explained that medical personnel advised him to seek treatment because the contents of the spray were unknown.
“They’re saying we don’t know if there’s bleach in it. We don’t know what they put in the solution that they sprayed at me,” Scales said while being transported in an ambulance.
“That’s why I got to go, but I’m feeling better.”
Scales added that the incident marked his first experience being sprayed while reporting, noting wryly that it appeared to come with the territory of covering volatile protests.
WATCH:
UPDATE: En route to hospital after being MACED at an Anti-Ice protest in Philadelphia. pic.twitter.com/MZOVzRiO7z
— SurgePhilly (@Surge_Philly) January 10, 2026
The incident comes amid heightened tensions surrounding demonstrations targeting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Reporters and law enforcement alike are facing increasingly aggressive behavior from activists during on-the-ground coverage.
READ MORE – Masked Anti-ICE Agitator Admits She ‘Getting Paid’ to Attend Minneapolis Protest
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