Federal Appeals Court Orders Reporter to Divulge Her Sources in Lawsuit

The D.C. Circuit upheld a judge’s order requiring Catherine Herridge to pay $800 per day in fines until she divulges her source.

Catherine Herridge attends the White House Correspondents’ Dinner after-party at the Residence of the French Ambassador in Washington, on April 30, 2022. Shedrick Pelt/Getty Images

A federal appeals court ruled on Sept. 30 that investigative reporter Catherine Herridge must disclose the name of her sources for a series of Fox News reports regarding a Chinese American scientist the FBI investigated but did not charge.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit held that Herridge is not entitled under federal law to withhold the identity of sources she used in preparing her reports on scientist Yanping Chen.