Catherine Herridge

Catherine Herridge
Catherine Herridge
	Herridge in 2020
Born	Toronto, Ontario
Education	Harvard University (BA); Columbia University (MA)
Occupation(s)	Journalist, author
Spouse	Lt Col JD Hayes
Children	2

Catherine Herridge is an American journalist who was a senior investigative correspondent for CBS News in Washington D.C. from 2019 to 2024. She began at CBS after leaving her role as chief intelligence correspondent for Fox News Channel, which she joined at its inception in 1996.^[1] Herridge was among twenty CBS News employees laid-off in February 2024.

Early life and education

Herridge was born in Toronto, Ontario, and attended Jarvis Collegiate Institute for high school before moving to the US for college.

Herridge earned a Bachelor's degree from Harvard College and a Master's degree in journalism from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.^[2]^[3]

Career

In journalism

Initially a London-based correspondent for ABC News, Herridge joined the Fox News Channel at its inception in 1996. Herridge has also served as a field correspondent for the defunct Fox newsmagazine The Pulse.^{[citation needed]}

At Fox, she covered Hillary Clinton almost exclusively, including Clinton's campaign for Senate in 2000, the 2004 Democratic presidential elections, the Washington, D.C.-area sniper attacks, the U.S.-sponsored resolution calling for the lifting of sanctions against Iraq, and the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person charged in the U.S. over the 9/11 attacks.^{[citation needed]}

Herridge was in New York on September 11, 2001, and reported for the network from locations in New York City.^[4]

On October 31, 2019, Fox News announced Herridge would be leaving the network shortly after being awarded the Tex McCrary Award for Journalism from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society for her enterprise reporting at Fox News.^{[citation needed]} She then joined CBS News as a senior investigative correspondent later that year.^[5]

Some CBS staffers and Democrats accused Herridge of promoting Republican talking points and conservative conspiracy theories. Daily Beast media reporter Maxwell Tani observed that Herridge at times got scoops with prominent Trump administration officials and asked "softball" questions, adding she was "considered a star in conservative media circles" but was "careful to never cross the line into overt advocacy." CNN anchor Jake Tapper and national security attorney Mark Zaid have defended her work.^[6]

Herridge was among twenty CBS News employees laid off on February 13, 2024, among hundreds terminated by CBS parent Paramount Global.^[7]

In 2024 Herridge was held in civil contempt of court for refusing to testify regarding the sources for a story. In 2017 Herridge reported on a government investigation of University of Management and Technology and its founder. Charges were never filed. The founder sued several government agencies alleging they had leaked information to Herridge to damage the founder's reputation. Pursuant to that suit Herridge was ordered to testify about her sources, then held in contempt for refusing to do so.^[8]^[9]^[10] According to Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, courts had ruled Herridge would be unable to appeal the order to testify until she had first been held in contempt for refusing.^[10]