Sounds like the reporter has no grasp whatsoever of firearms or the local firearm laws.
I lived in LI for years. People there have very little exposure to arms unless they are in certain trades.
Nobody I knew had a gun, unless it was an old collectors piece - and if they did, they didn’t talk about it. The police respond quite fast in my area, and many liberal types just don’t see the need for self defense. I once called the cops because I heard a scream - they were at my door within two minutes.
When I moved to the south I was astounded by all the guns here. Heck, when I joined my first church the pastors wife started discussing her guns at the first bible study meeting.
It’s a different outlook. Guns are alien to the liberal culture. They really don’t “get” them. They’ve been safe for so long.