Catherine Herridge — the popular CBS News investigative reporter known for her reporting on the Hunter Biden laptop scandal — told the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday that the network “crossed a red line” when it seized its files after his dismissal.
Breaking his silence for the first time since his controversial firing in February, Herridge slammed his former bosses for potentially putting his sources at risk.
“CBS News’ decision to seize my reporting files crossed a red line that, in my opinion, should never be crossed by any media organization,” she said in her opening statement at the hearing , titled “Fight for a Free Press: Protecting Journalists and Their Sources.” “,
“Several sources said they feared that by working with me to expose government corruption and misconduct, they would be identified and exposed. »
Herridge — who is in the midst of a First Amendment case closely watched by journalists nationwide — was among 20 CBS News employees fired as part of a broader purge of 800 employees by Paramount.
“CBS News locked me out of the building and seized hundreds of pages of my reporting files, including confidential information about my sources,” Herridge testified.
“I fought back and, thanks to the public support of my union, SAG-AFTRA, the records were returned. » .
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) had asked CBS to provide information on the circumstances surrounding the seizure of the file.
While some sources called the seizure “unprecedented” at CBS, the network insisted in a written response to the committee before the hearing that the episode was not unusual.
CBS said no one searched the files and they were ultimately locked away in Herridge’s former office in Washington, DC.
Although SAG-AFTRA played a key role in negotiating the safe return of the files, questions remain about why CBS News detained them.
During his time at CBS, Herridge had encountered obstacles from senior officials regarding his coverage of Hunter Biden, sources previously told the Post.
She also clashed with CBS News President Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews, who was investigated and exonerated in 2021 on accusations of favoritism and discriminatory hiring and management practices, as The Post previously reported.
Meanwhile, in the closely watched First Amendment case, the journalist appealed U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper’s decision to find her in contempt for withholding the name of her source for an investigative story that she wrote while working for Fox News seven years ago.
Herridge said the litigation and being held in contempt had “taken a toll on me and my career.”
“One of our children recently asked me if I would go to prison, if we would lose our house and
if we lost our family savings to protect my sources,” she said. “I wanted to respond that, in this country, where we say we value democracy and the role of a dynamic and free press, it was
impossible. But I couldn’t offer that assurance.
“This is not a battle you can fight alone,” Herridge added, thanking her fellow journalists for their support, as well as Fox News, which is funding her legal defense.
“When you go through major events in your life, as I have experienced in recent weeks, losing your job, your
health insurance, the seizure of your declaration files by your former employer and detention in
contempt of court, it gives you clarity,” she said. “The First Amendment, the protection of confidential data
sources and a free press are my guiding principles. They are my North Star.
Heridge cited the importance of the press law, which protects journalists from being forced to disclose their sources to government agencies.
The House passed the law in January, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) told The Post last month that the upper chamber could soon send the law to President Biden’s desk.
In addition to Herridge, Mary Cavallaro, SAG-AFTRA’s chief information and broadcasting officer, will speak Thursday about the union’s negotiations with CBS to return Herridge’s confidential documents following his firing.
The House Judiciary Committee will also hear testimony from former CBS News reporter Sharyl Attkisson, who left the network in 2014 after claiming CBS killed stories that put then-President Barack Obama under a bad day.
New York Post
