Fox News: Civil contempt order against reporter ‘deeply chilling’

US television channel Fox News says a court ruling that found one of its former journalists in civil contempt should appeal.

A federal court on Thursday found Catherine Herridge in civil contempt for refusing to reveal key sources for a 2017 Fox News investigative series.

The judge imposed a fine of $800 per day until Herridge complied. The fines will not take effect immediately to give journalists time to appeal.

Fox News said in a statement shared with VOA on Friday that the decision had troubling consequences for the media.

“Disdain for journalists for protecting confidential sources has a deeply chilling effect on journalism,” a Fox News spokesperson said. “Fox News Media remains committed to protecting the rights to a free press and free speech and believes this decision should be questioned Appeal.”

The case centers on a series of reports Herridge did for Fox News in 2017 about Chinese-American scientist Yanping Chen, who was investigated by the FBI but never charged.

Herridge examined Chen’s ties to the Chinese military and questioned whether the scientist used a professional school she founded in Virginia to help the Chinese government obtain information about U.S. service members.

The stories are based on what Chen’s lawyers claim were leaked during the investigation, including snippets of FBI documents summarizing interviews conducted during the investigation, personal photos and information taken from Chen’s immigration and naturalization forms and internal FBI PowerPoint presentations . According to media reports.

In 2018, Chen sued the FBI and Justice Department, claiming her personal information was selectively leaked to “smear her reputation and harm her livelihood.”

U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper wrote in Thursday’s ruling against Herridge that he “recognizes the critical importance of a free press in our society” and the critical role of confidential sources in investigative journalism. .

But the judge said the courts “also have their own role in upholding the law and maintaining judicial authority.”

Herridge declined under oath to identify the source.

In August, Herridge was ordered to answer questions about sources during a deposition by Chen’s attorney.

When Herridge was interviewed under oath by Attorney Chen in September, she refused dozens of times to reveal her sources.

At one point she said, “I respectfully invoke my First Amendment right to refuse to answer.”

Herridge’s attorney, Patrick Philbin, said forcing reporters to turn over sources “would undermine her credibility and undermine her ability to play a role in uncovering important information to the public.”

Philbin said in court documents that disclosing the identity of Herridge’s sources would raise national security concerns, the Associated Press reported, adding that there was a “serious risk” that Chen “was involved in providing information about U.S. service members to China.” “.

Presented by Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press (RCFP) Introduction to amicus curiae Support Herridge.

In it, the RCFP said that if the court does find Herridge in contempt, “it should impose only nominal sanctions and suspend the sanctions while Herridge appeals the court’s denial of her motion to quash Chen’s subpoena.”

“The ability of journalists to assure sources that their identities remain confidential is critical to maintaining the media’s structural role as a watchdog on government, particularly in the area of ​​national security,” the RCFP said in a statement in January.

“When sources stop talking to reporters because they fear their identities will not be protected, the loss undermines the ability of voters to make informed political, social and economic decisions, and of elected officials and others in positions of power,” the statement said. The ability to take responsibility.”

Herridge, who was recently fired from CBS News, is expected to appeal the court decision.

Some material for this story comes from The Associated Press.