John Stossel Got Slapped Twice by David Schultz for Investigating the WWF

Thanks to a new documentary titled Mr. McMahon , many are learning about the history of wrestling for the very first time, or revisiting some of the pivotal moments in the history of the business. One such moment from the documentary that has commanded plenty of attention is the moment when reporter John Stossel got slapped by wrestler David Schultz.

The documentary recounts the story, and also shares footage from the time. Here's what we know about why John Stossel got hit, and what the reaction was afterwards.

Why did John Stossel get slapped while reporting on the WWF?

John Stossel, who was a reporter for ABC at the time, came to the WWF, and according to Hulk Hogan, it quickly became clear that he wanted to expose that wrestling was not as real as many of its fans believed.

“I say, ‘Vince, this guy is not here to find out how popular Hulk Hogan is. He’s here to expose the wrestling business,'" he says in the documentary after speaking with John.

Wrestler Tony Atlas recalled that Vince said he wished someone would do something to the reporter, while Hulk said that he never her the legendary wrestling head say anything of that sort.

The documentary then cuts to footage of John being slapped. He is speaking with wrestler David Schultz, and says, "I think this is fake." After he says that, David hits him hard, twice, asking him if he thinks those hits are fake.

It's unclear whether David Schultz was acting on his own.

Vince, who has said that the documentary is "deceptively edited," also said that David's attack on John "came out of nowhere." Afterward, though, Tony said that they all "celebrated" David's slaps, including Vince. They clearly wanted to protect their industry and weren't necessarily bothered if they felt like they had to use violence to do it.

Vince McMahon faced a lawsuit by John Stossel over the incident.

Although they may have been thrilled with the slap at the moment, Vince had some pretty serious consequences for the slap. John apparently sued him, and the two settled out of court for $400,000, according to Sports Illustrated .

Years later, David claimed that Vince had ordered him to hit John as a way of getting rid of both the reporter and the wrestler doing the dirty work.

After the incident and the resulting lawsuit, Vince fired David. It's hard to say for sure whether the wrestling magnate really ordered the hit, but the best version of the story suggests that Vince simply put it out there that he would be happy if someone did something to disrupt the story.

When David stepped up to the plate to do exactly that, it seemed like Vince was ultimately happy with the results. Of course, it did cost him a pretty penny, but in the grand scheme of the broader operation, that small sum may have been worth the price. Anything to maintain the illusion that wrestling isn't staged.