{"id":4775,"date":"2026-07-03T04:07:22","date_gmt":"2026-07-03T04:07:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relocationtimess.com\/?p=4775"},"modified":"2026-07-03T04:07:22","modified_gmt":"2026-07-03T04:07:22","slug":"supreme-court-declines-to-halt-daily-800-fine-for-ex-fox-news-reporter-refusing-to-divulge-sources","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relocationtimess.com\/?p=4775","title":{"rendered":"Supreme Court declines to halt daily $800 fine for ex-Fox News reporter refusing to divulge sources"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\n<\/span>AP<\/span>\u00a0\u2014\u00a0<\/span>\n<\/cite><\/div>\n

\n The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to intervene after a judge ordered an $800-a-day fine for a former Fox News reporter if she refuses to reveal her confidential source for stories about a Chinese American scientist who was investigated by the FBI but never charged.\n <\/p>

Read more Early, intense West Nile season may signal a severe year for the mosquito-borne illness, CDC says<\/a><\/p>\n

\n The high court rebuffed an emergency appeal from Catherine Herridge. The veteran investigative reporter has been held in civil contempt as part of a lawsuit that scientist Yanping Chen filed against the government over the leak.\n <\/p>\n

\n Chief Justice John Roberts previously put a short-term hold on the fine as the court considered the appeal. On Thursday, the court said it was denying Herridge\u2019s bid to stay the fine. Justice Brett Kavanaugh supported granting the application for a stay, the court said.\n <\/p>\n

\n Herridge published a series for Fox News in 2017 that examined Chen\u2019s ties to the Chinese military and raised questions about whether the scientist was using a professional school she founded in Virginia to help the Chinese government get information about American servicemembers.\n <\/p>\n

\n Fox News Media expressed disappointment in the decision.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cProtecting 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\u2019s decision, our commitment to defending these critical First Amendment principles remains unwavering and we will be reviewing our options to further fight this injustice,\u201d the network said in a statement.\n <\/p>\n

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\"Catherine<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n<\/div>\n
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\nCatherine Herridge speaking at the X Corp Keynote during CES 2025 at The Venetian Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada, on January 7, 2025.<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
DeeCee Carter\/MediaPunch\/IPX\/AP\/File<\/figcaption>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n Herridge\u2019s attorneys did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.\n <\/p>\n

\n The stories relied on what Chen\u2019s lawyers say were items leaked from the probe into statements she made on immigration forms related to work on a Chinese astronaut program.\n <\/p>\n

\n Those include snippets of an FBI document summarizing an interview conducted during the investigation, personal photographs, and information taken from her immigration and naturalization forms and from an internal FBI PowerPoint presentation, according to court documents.\n <\/p>\n

\n The six-year probe never resulted in charges against Chen, and in 2018 she sued the FBI and the Justice Department.\n <\/p>\n

\n Her suit said that both her personal and professional life were upended amid a wave of negative media attention after the leak, leading to hate mail and death threats. She accused the government of violating the Privacy Act, which prohibits the public disclosure of private information about individuals without their consent.\n <\/p>

Read more Sen. Mitch McConnell remains hospitalized as \u2018he continues his recovery,\u2019 spokesperson says<\/a><\/p>\n

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\nWASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 30: Catherine Herridge attends Paramount’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner after party at the Residence of the French Ambassador on April 30, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Shedrick Pelt\/Getty Images)<\/span>\n<\/div>\n
Shedrick Pelt\/Getty Images<\/figcaption>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\nShe reported a scientist was under FBI investigation. Now a judge is ordering her to reveal her source<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

3 min read<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n

\n A judge ordered Herridge to answer questions about her source or sources in a deposition with Chen\u2019s lawyers. US District Judge Christopher Cooper in Washington ruled that Chen\u2019s need to know for the sake of her lawsuit overcame Herridge\u2019s right to shield her source.\n <\/p>\n

\n Herridge was interviewed under oath but declined to answer questions about her sources. The judge eventually held her in contempt, and the fine was set to begin after the order was upheld by an appeals court panel.\n <\/p>\n

\n The case has been closely watched by media advocates, who say forcing journalists to betray a promise of confidentiality could make sources think twice before providing information to reporters that could expose government wrongdoing.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cJournalists facing contempt should not have to muster large payments to the court while they seek to vindicate First Amendment rights,\u201d said Bruce Brown, president of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. \u201cAnd forcing them to betray source confidences always has a harmful impact on the free flow of information to the public.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n Chen\u2019s lawyers say they have exhausted other ways to identify the leaker, and the identity is key to making their case that the Privacy Act was violated. Attorney Andrew Phillips said they hope Thursday\u2019s decision will help bring the matter to a close.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cDr. Chen, like any other American citizen, is entitled to discover the identity of the federal official(s) who abused their access to an American\u2019s private information and leaked it to cause her harm. That type of corrupt, unlawful conduct is exactly what the Privacy Act was designed to address,\u201d he said.\n <\/p>\n

\n Herridge reported for Fox News and CBS News before recently becoming an independent journalist.\n <\/p>

Read more Exclusive: Trump administration plans to boost worksite immigration enforcement after increase in criminal probes<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to intervene after a judge ordered an $800-a-day fine for Catherine Herridge, a former Fox News reporter, if she refuses to reveal her confidential source for stories about a Chinese American scientist who was investigated by the FBI but never charged.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4770,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4775","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nSupreme Court declines to halt daily $800 fine for ex-Fox News reporter refusing to divulge sources - Relocation Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/relocationtimess.com\/?p=4775\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Supreme Court declines to halt daily $800 fine for ex-Fox News reporter refusing to divulge sources - 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