Prominent digital journalist pulls out of Milwaukee: 'For those who are perceivably white, it is just not safe to be here'

A well-known journalist who frequently covers civil unrest across the country has decided to leave Milwaukee due to "racial tensions" he observed while covering the protests Sunday night.

"For those who are perceivably white, it is just not safe to be here," Tim Pool said in a YouTube video Monday.

Protests in Milwaukee first erupted over the weekend, after a police officer fatally shot an armed black man on Saturday.

Pool is among several journalists covering the uprising to express concern for his safety over the weekend, after the protests turned violent.

Pool said during Sunday's protests that he heard members of the crowd yell comments such as, "F-k white people" and "What are these white people doing here?" and observed one reporter being grabbed, and another being hit in the head by a protester who then attempted to incite others to attack the reporters.

Pool, the director of media innovation for Fusion, gained prominence in recent years for covering protests such as Occupy Wall Street in 2011 and Ferguson, Missouri in 2014, using aerial drones and live-streaming.

Pool said in the video that his decision to pull out was finalized when he witnessed a white 18-year-old being shot in the neck during the protests.

Milwaukee police have confirmed that an 18-year-old man sustained a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to the neck, but have not specified his race.

"When you hear a group directing their anger and hate towards white people, and then see several white people being attacked, and then finally an 18-year-old white kid is shot in the neck, that's when I'm like, 'Okay. I shouldn't be here,'" Pool said.

Pool is not the only reporter to witness tension between reporters and Milwaukee residents in recent days.

BuzzFeed reporter Jim Dalrymple II reported early Monday morning that he was chased by a group of men in a Chevrolet Suburban as he drove back to his hotel. He tweeted that he didn't know who the men were, and that an armed security guard eventually escorted him from his car into the hotel.

"For those asking, I'm fine. But not going to lie, I'm a bit shaken up from when they started rushing the car. Not sure where that was going," Dalrymple tweeted.

BuzzFeed told Business Insider they are "continuing to cover this story," but did not confirm whether Dalrymple will remain in Milwaukee to do so.

Another reporter from the local Fox affiliate WITI tweeted that he cut the station's broadcast after receiving threats:

Other media outlets have reported that police officers have been targeted with rocks, bricks, and other objects, and several buildings have been burned during the riots.

Watch Pool's full video below: