WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to step in and stop an $800-a-day fine imposed on a former Fox News journalist who is refusing to name the confidential sources behind her reporting on a Chinese American scientist.
The high court turned away an emergency request from Catherine Herridge, a veteran investigative journalist who has been held in civil contempt of court. The contempt finding is connected to a lawsuit brought by scientist Yanping Chen against the federal government over the leak of private information about her.
Chief Justice John Roberts had previously placed a temporary hold on the fine while the justices weighed the appeal. On Thursday, the court announced it would not grant Herridge’s request to pause the fine. Justice Brett Kavanaugh was the lone justice who indicated he would have allowed the stay.
In 2017, Herridge authored a series of reports for Fox News examining Chen’s alleged connections to the Chinese military. The stories raised questions about whether a professional school Chen established in Virginia was being used to funnel information about American military personnel to the Chinese government.
Fox News Media issued a statement expressing its displeasure with the ruling. “Protecting the confidentiality of journalistic sourcing and the integrity of the newsgathering process is fundamental to a free and functioning democracy. While we are deeply disappointed by the Court’s decision, our commitment to defending these critical First Amendment principles remains unwavering and we will be reviewing our options to further fight this injustice,” the network said.
Attorneys representing Herridge did not respond to requests for comment.
Chen’s legal team contends that the reporting drew on materials leaked from the government’s investigation into statements she made on immigration paperwork related to her involvement with a Chinese astronaut program. Those materials reportedly included portions of an FBI interview summary, personal photos, and details pulled from her immigration and naturalization documents, as well as an internal FBI PowerPoint presentation.
The FBI investigation into Chen lasted six years but resulted in no charges. In 2018, she filed a lawsuit against the FBI and the Justice Department, claiming the leak destroyed both her personal life and professional reputation, triggering a wave of hate mail and even death threats. Her lawsuit accused the government of violating the Privacy Act, which bars the unauthorized public release of private personal information.
A federal judge ordered Herridge to answer questions about her source or sources during a deposition with Chen’s attorneys. U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper in Washington ruled that Chen’s need to identify the leaker for her lawsuit outweighed Herridge’s right to protect her source.
Herridge sat for a sworn deposition but refused to answer questions about her sources. The judge subsequently held her in contempt, and the daily fine was set to begin after an appeals court panel upheld the ruling.
Press freedom advocates have been watching the case with concern, arguing that compelling journalists to break promises of confidentiality could discourage future sources from sharing information that might expose government misconduct.
Chen’s attorneys say they have tried every other available avenue to identify the leaker, and that knowing who it is remains essential to proving their Privacy Act claim.
Before becoming an independent journalist, Herridge worked for both Fox News and CBS News.
