A Canadian television reporter has called out a nine-year-old boy and his guardian for yelling a sexually aggressive comment at her while she was recording a segment.

Michelle Mackey, a CityNews Toronto journalist, was filming a segment outside the city’s Rogers Centre and describing the scenes around her when a young boy and a man walked past.

“F–k her right in the p—y,” the little boy yelled out as Mackey worked. The man he was with burst out laughing at the disturbing comment.

Mackey’s face shifted from professional to one of anger and disgust at the act.

The boy was bringing back to life a meme that was a popular meme a decade ago where people would shout it in the background of reporters who were filming.

It is thought to originate from a series of videos from filmmaker John Cain that were published in 2014. The internet then ran with it, and it was typically used to harass female journalists.

“This was one of the most alarming things I’ve witnessed as a news reporter. What looked to be an 8 or 9-year-old boy yelled this at me, WITH HIS FATHER BY HIS SIDE. They proceeded to laugh and walk away,” Mackey captioned the video, which has 3.3 million views.

“Out of respect for the child, I’m blurring their faces. Whether this is yelled at a man or woman, it perpetuates and normalises misogyny. I thought this horrible trend was over.”

In an interview with NBC TODAY, Mackey said she was “disturbed” by the young boy’s actions.

“I waved them back … I just wanted to be able to look that father and kid in the eye and say, ‘Can you say that again to me, looking me in the eye as a human being?’” she told the publication.

“But they wouldn’t come back. They just laughed and gave me a thumbs up and kept on walking.”

She said the boy was so young and the adult with him should have stepped in and told him what he did wasn’t okay, rather than encourage it by laughing. She said the phrase was “violating”.

“You probably are coming at this from a place of humour, and you probably think this is funny and not harmful, but I just hope you can consider the words that came out of your mouth … And really think about what those words mean. And just ask yourself … would you look in the eye of someone you love and say that to them,” she said.

The video Mackey uploaded garnered a lot of attention. Many people were divided, with some claiming it was just a joke and others calling out the child’s actions.

“FHRITP in 2025 is crazy,” one said.

Another social media user commented: “Why is everyone so mad does no one remember the original?”

“Ah misogyny, still teaching our children it’s OK to be violent towards women. I’m so sorry this happened to you,” one said.

One added: “This is literally what Adolescence is about and men in the comments still aren’t getting it.”

Another person branded it a “classic meme” and suggested the reporter needed to “get with the times.”