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News reporter Tatiana Limanova gives the middle finger during a live news when she flipped off President Barack Obama 

A Russian newscaster made quite a statement when she flipped off President Barack Obama live on air.

Tatyana Limanova, an award-winning journalist from privately-owned Russian television channel REN TV, was reading a segment about the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation conference when she made the offensive symbol - just as she said the U.S. president's name.

She was looking down as she spoke about how Russian president Dmitry Medvedev would be assuming the head of the conference as part of the rotating chairmanship. 

Flipping the bird: Tatiana Limanova looked down and purposefully raised her arm- and middle finger- when she said President Obama's name

But as she read that the post was previously held by Mr Obama, she distinctly raised her arm - and then her middle finger,

Ms Limanova's station declined to comment about the incident.

Given the timing of the segment, Ms Limanova may have thought that she was off camera when she 'flipped the bird', considering there was a cut-away video segment shortly following her move.

REN TV is transmitted to roughly 120 million people in Russia, and is considered to be one of the more liberal channels in a country where the media is tightly controlled by the government. 

Quite harsh: Ms Limanova was not particularly warm during the rest of the segment

Sources said that Ms Limanova would not be facing any formal punishment from her employers.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk
http://www.mix4m.com/2011/11/news-reporter-tatiana-limanova-gives.html