Several CBS News reporters have been embroiled in 800 layoffs at Paramount Global, including reporters embroiled in high-stakes First Amendment disputes and workplace behavior scandals. The Post has learned that a reporter who reportedly survived a personnel investigation over the incident was also included.
Kathryn Herridge, an award-winning senior correspondent whose First Amendment case is closely watched by journalists across the country, said she received a pink slip Tuesday from hundreds of CBS parent company Paramount Inc. Among the employees was Katherine Herridge, people familiar with the matter told the Post.
The carnage sparked outrage among CBS’ rank-and-file employees, who focused their anger on Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish, who withheld a total of $32 million in compensation last year, even as the company’s finances continued to shrink. Some people let it happen.
“Everyone in the newsroom is angry that Bob Bakish is making these cuts when he makes over $30 million,” one source fumed.
Elsewhere, some wondered if the job cuts were aimed at more than just cost-cutting.
Mr. Herridge had clashed with CBS News president Ingrid Cyprian-Matthews, people familiar with the matter said. He was a hard-nosed executive who was investigated in 2021 for favoritism and discriminatory hiring and management practices, the Post has revealed.
CBS News’ Washington bureau, where Mr. Herridge covered national security and intelligence, was particularly hard hit, the people said.
Other victims in Washington include CBS News correspondent Jeff Peggs, who was accused of degrading a female colleague in a “20-minute rant” at work, according to officials. He is said to have been the subject of a personnel investigation regarding his actions.
When the case was investigated in 2021, insiders said Cyprian-Matthews, who had been accused by insiders of promoting minorities while unfairly excluding white journalists, did not support female correspondents. He said he tried to “blame” his staff and ultimately promoted Pegus.
Follow The Post’s coverage of the Paramount-CBS turmoil for the latest updates.
This is despite previous allegations that Peggs “abused” and “bullied” young female reporters who “outperformed” him, a former CBS manager told the Post.
“She eliminated her opponents under the guise of budget cuts,” one source said of Cyprian Matthews after Tuesday’s firing.
“She cleared the deck, but had to sacrifice other decks like Pegs.”
The newspaper has contacted Cyprian-Matthews for comment.
Cyprian-Matthews’ boss, Wendy McMahon, had defended the executive over her handling of the personnel investigation involving Peggs.
“Any claims of discriminatory conduct are false,” McMahon, president and CEO of CBS News, Stations and CBS Media Ventures, told the Post at the time.
CBS News, which employs just under 2,000 people, has cut 20 jobs in total, according to people familiar with the matter.
Among those fired Tuesday was political correspondent Christina Ruffini, who has been featured on “CBS Evening News with Norah O’Donnell,” “CBS Mornings” and “CBS Sunday Morning.”
Pamela Falk, a CBS News UN correspondent based in New York, was also fired, according to people familiar with the matter.
CBS News did not respond to a request for comment.
Herridge will soon be held in contempt of court for not disclosing the sources of an investigative article he wrote in 2017 while working for Fox News, and will be required to pay personal fines totaling up to $5,000 per day. May be ordered.
Fox News is paying Herridge’s legal fees, the people said.
Herridge’s resignation did not comply with U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper’s order to reveal how he learned of a federal investigation into a Chinese-American scientist who ran a graduate program in Virginia. This was carried out amid criticism from journalists.
According to Herridge’s report, scientist Chen Yanping had been under investigation for years for allegedly lying on immigration documents related to China’s astronaut program.
Chen later sued the government, claiming details of the investigation were leaked to defame him.
Rather than allow CBS or FOX to pay, she asked the court to hold Mr. Herridge in contempt and make him personally pay the fees, which range from $500 to $5,000 a day.
Last August, a judge ruled that the need for Chen’s evidence “exceeded Herridge’s First Amendment qualified privilege.”
First Amendment advocates push back, arguing that journalists can only carry out public service work if they can protect the identities of confidential sources.
