Former Fox News Reporter Steps In It
Reporter Ordered to Reveal FBI Source in Privacy Leak Case
Journalists often defend their right to protect sources, but few face real penalties.
One rare case now involves Fox News reporter Catherine Herridge,
who has been ordered to reveal her FBI source in a decade-old privacy lawsuit.
The case began when Yanping Chen, a Chinese American scientist, was investigated by the FBI but never charged.
Later, Herridge published details from Chen’s seized property—information protected under the Privacy Act.
Chen sued, alleging the FBI illegally leaked her private records.
Herridge argued that much of her reporting relied on public information and that Chen’s claims were “frivolous.”
The appeals court disagreed, ruling that “so long as Chen establishes that some Privacy Act violation harmed her,
she may recover actual or statutory damages.”
The unanimous decision rejected Herridge’s First Amendment defense,
declaring she must disclose who leaked Chen’s records—testing the limits of press freedom versus personal privacy.
