Georgia reporter hits back after a man slapped her butt on live TV: You 'objectified' me

A female reporter is standing up for herself after she was inappropriately touched by a male runner during a live broadcast from a 5K race in Georgia.

Alex Bozarjian, with NBC News affiliate WSAV-TV, was reporting live from the the annual Enmarket Savannah Bridge Run on Saturday when a male participant slapped her on the butt as he ran by.

"To the man who smacked my butt on live TV this morning: You violated, objectified, and embarrassed me," Bozarjian tweeted Saturday along with the footage. "No woman should EVER have to put up with this at work or anywhere!! Do better."

In the video clip, Bozarjian described the race atmosphere to viewers at home while enthusiastic runners cheered and waved to the camera as they jogged past her live shot. That's when a man wearing glasses and a blue, long-sleeve shirt slapped her on the bottom.

Bozarjian appeared visibly disturbed by the groping and stuttered over her words as she tried to regain her composure for the sake of her live shot.

The viral clip has over 10 million views.

In a series of tweets Sunday, the Savannah Sports Council, which hosted the event, denounced the runner's behavior and banned him from participating in future races.

"At the Enmarket Savannah Bridge Run a reporter from WSAV was inappropriately touched by a registered participant of the event," the council tweeted Sunday. We "take this matter extremely seriously and fully condemn this individual’s actions."

Officials say they were easily able to identify the runner through his race bib and ultimately shared "his information with the reporter and her station."

"We will not tolerate behavior like this at a Savannah Sports Council event," the council added in another tweet. "We have made the decision to ban this individual from registering for all Savannah Sports Council owned races."

This is the latest incident of a female reporter being sexually harassed on live TV.

In September, a man kissed WAVE 3 News reporter Sara Rivest during a live broadcast at the Bourbon & Beyond music festival in Kentucky. The man, later identified as Eric Goodman, was charged with misdemeanor harassment with physical contact, police said.

Like Bozarjian, Rivest took to Twitter to defend herself. She tweeted, "Hey mister, here’s your 3 seconds of fame. How about you not touch me? Thanks!!"

"Journalists in the field, especially women, again just trying to do their jobs experience harassment like this all of the time, and it is not OK," Rivest later added. "If you want to act like an idiot behind me in a live shot, that's your choice… But when you put your hands on me or on anyone else without their approval, that is wrong."

More: Man who kissed reporter on live TV charged with harassment in Kentucky

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Georgia reporter hits back after a man slapped her butt on live TV