A veteran journalist who is refusing to divulge her sources could be held in contempt of court

By ERIC TUCKER and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge in Washington is weighing whether to hold in contempt a veteran journalist who has refused to identify her sources for stories about a Chinese scientist who was investigated by the FBI but never charged. The lawsuit from Yanping Chen seeks to force journalist Catherine Herridge to reveal her sources for a series of 2017 stories for Fox News that disclosed the existence of the probe and relied on documents that Chen says were leaked by government officials. Press freedom groups are closely watching the case and say forcing a reporter to reveal sources would have a chilling effect. Herridge now works at CBS. It is not clear when the judge might rule on Chen’s request to hold Herridge in contempt.