Posted on 02/23/2024 6:18:08 AM PST by MtnClimber
Meanwhile, Biden gives an interview boasting about his commitment to the First Amendment.
Paramount is on the chopping block and as part of that, CBS News began a purge of journalists. One of its top targets was former FOX News reporter Catherine Herridge: a serious reporter respected even by liberals.
What happened next was more shocking though when CBS News seized her files including confidential source information.
The source said the network boxed up all her personal belongings except for Herridge’s notes and files and informed her that it would decide what — if anything — would be returned to her.
“They never seize documents [when you’re let go],” a second source close to the network said.
“They want to see what damaging documents she has.”
Sources feared the network’s actions could have an impact on Herridge’s First Amendment case because her documents may contain privileged conversations she had with her lawyers or the identities of sources.
There are two angles here. Beyond the Hunter Biden story, Herridge had also been sued by a Chinese scientist over an FBI investigation and was under a judicial order to reveal her sources, but that was back at FOX News. CBS News was not a party to that case and there would be no reason for it to get involved in the lawsuit.
Hunter Biden’s people however have been aggressive lately and giving them access to whatever Herridge had would provide the legal team with a leg up.
CBS News had recently been taken over by Ciprian-Matthews, the former D.C. bureau chief for CBS News, who apart from being accused of wokeness and promoting minorities at the expense of more qualified personnel, would have the potential contacts.
The situation is serious enough that the SAG-AFTRA union issued a statement warning that, “This action is deeply concerning to the union because it sets a dangerous precedent for all media professionals and threatens the very foundation of the First Amendment.”
“It is completely inappropriate for an employer to lay off a reporter and take the very unusual step of retaining and searching the reporter’s files, inclusive of confidential source identification and information. From a First Amendment standpoint, a media corporation with a commitment to journalism calling a reporter’s research and confidential source reporting ‘proprietary information’ is both shocking and absurd.”
CBS News claims that it’s closing off access to the materials and wants to return them, but then why did it seize them at all? In the time that it had access to them, it could have searched through, copied what was needed and is now offering to return violated materials. We don’t know that this is what happened, but it raises questions.
Unless CBS News feared litigation, it had no reason to seize the materials. The likely alterative is that it sought to access content there on behalf of a third party.
All of this is happening while Biden gives an interview boasting about his commitment to the First Amendment.
The merger of state and corporate power. — Benito Mussolini
Daniel Greenfield ping
Nice media empire you have there, be a shame if something happened to it...
Now, what they do with that work product, notes, and intellectual property is a different matter.
CBS compromised decades ago?
“Now, what they do with that work product, notes, and intellectual property is a different matter.”
The article made it sound like it was an action to support the president’s son and, obviously, any references to the president which compromises him which should now place the information under NSA control. If they find anything, and I feel that is why CBS took control of the material, then they should be providing that information to the proper federal agencies otherwise they are a party to espionage. Grand jury needs to get involved and a subpoena for the information needs to be applied as it is now a preponderance of evidence in CBS possession and due to the probability of it’s use in a criminal and Constitutional crime involving the POTUS. It is theirs, but they need to turn it in like any citizen. Otherwise, they are committing spoliation of evidence.
wy69
“What happened next was more shocking though when CBS News seized her files including confidential source information.”
Did she really trust CBS not to do so?
Ner parting remarks when leaving fox would make it seem that she did trust cbs- I beleive she said s9mething along the line of ‘fox is biased’ or soemthing like that.
Then there was this from her
“CBS News has always placed a premium on enterprise journalism and powerful investigations,” she said. “I feel privileged to join a team where facts and storytelling will always matter.”
The MSM gets money from the Left so it’s not allowed to investigate the Left
And you know this data was immediately turned over to the American KGB.
You can’t believe a damn thing you see or hear in the Yellowstream “media” anymore. It’s all far-left, liberal booschidt. And that ain’t any “misinformation”. You can take that to the bank.
Sources? They were allowed to seize sources?
I have no personal experience with being a reporter, but all my life I had been told that a reporter's sources are confidential, and this confidentiality agreement between a reporter and a source was not expected to include the employer of the reporter.
Do you think the Washington Post knew who "deep throat" was?
Whether it be a legal line or not, this action certainly crosses an industry standard line regarding the confidentiality of sources.
Yes, if I recall history correctly, Washington Post knew. All of the work product belongs to the employer. If you were an employer you’d know this and be sensitive to this. The reporter is an employee, nothing more.
BTTT
The CIA-FBI is showing its colors as the militarized secret intelligence branch of the Democrat Party, in charge of media manipulation as we move deeper into election season.
Who is surprised by this blatant Stalinist move from the Brandon Junta?
Anybody know where Herridge is going to pop up next? I have followed her, but not the network she worked for.
CBS needs to call in Dan Rather to make sure that this attempt to suppress the truth is stopped.
I remember NYT reporter Judith Miller being jailed for refusing to name confidential source. This was back in 2005.
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