In a sweeping round of cutbacks at Paramount Global, a significant number of CBS News journalists found themselves among the 800 positions eliminated. This group included Catherine Herridge, a distinguished senior correspondent renowned for her career at Fox News and her dogged coverage of a pivotal First Amendment legal battle attracting widespread attention.
Herridge received notice of termination on Tuesday, as reported by insiders. The shake-up, at least in part, is reportedly due to a personal beef with the news network’s president, according to The New York Post.
The Post reported:
Insiders said Herridge had clashed with CBS News president Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews — a sharp-elbowed executive who was investigated in 2021 over favoritism and discriminatory hiring and management practices, as revealed by The Post.
Sources said CBS News’ Washington bureau, where Herridge covered national security and intelligence, was hit particularly hard.
Also among the Washington casualties, sources said, was CBS News correspondent Jeff Pegues, who had weathered HR probes over his workplace behavior, including an alleged incident in which he dressed down a female colleague in a “20-minute rant.”
When the incident was investigated in 2021, insiders said, Ciprian-Matthews attempted to “blame” the female correspondent and eventually gave Pegues a promotion — despite prior allegations that Pegues had been “lashing out” and “bullying” younger female reporters who “outworked” him, a former CBS manager told The Post.
Also among those laid off on Tuesday was Christina Ruffini, a political correspondent who has been featured on “CBS Evening News with Norah O’Donnell,” “CBS Morn ings” and “CBS Sunday Morning.” Also cut was Pamela Falk, CBS News correspondent for the United Nations based in New York, according to sources.
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An individual from CBS mentioned that CBS News, which has a workforce of just below 2,000, experienced a total of 20 job reductions. CBS News did not reply to inquiries for a comment.
Herridge, who previously worked at Fox News, has found herself at the heart of a pivotal First Amendment controversy. This follows a directive from a federal judge demanding that she disclose the confidential informants behind her 2017 reports on an FBI investigation into Yanping Chen, a Chinese American scientist.
The reports, which were published during Herridge’s tenure at Fox News, led Chen to initiate a lawsuit against the FBI in 2018. She claimed the agency violated her privacy by leaking information without authorization. In 2022, Chen sought to compel Herridge and Fox News to reveal the source of the leaks through a legal subpoena, a move both resisted by citing First Amendment rights.
The ruling by Judge Christopher Cooper ignited a fervent discussion on the delicate balance between safeguarding press freedom and the legal obligations of journalists. While acknowledging the indispensable role of confidential sources and press freedom, Judge Cooper determined that in this unique scenario, Chen’s legal right to the information outweighed Herridge’s right to protect her sources.
Herridge might soon face contempt of court charges for refusing to reveal the source behind her 2017 investigative report during her tenure at Fox News, potentially resulting in her being personally liable for daily fines up to $5,000.
A person familiar with the matter stated that Fox News is covering the legal expenses for Herridge.
