opinion
CBS News President Ingrid Cibrian Matthews, who was recently involved in the firing of investigative journalist Katherine Herridge, is set to receive a First Amendment Award from the RTDNA Foundation.
Cyprian Matthews, along with 12 other winners, will be honored on March 9 at the 33rd Annual First Amendment Awards Gala at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C.
“The RTDNA Foundation selected Cyprian Matthews for her commitment to excellent and ethical journalism, especially at a time when the stakes are so high,” a statement announcing the awards said.
“Her leadership through some of the most challenging news stories in American history is a testament to the power of journalism,” he adds.
Her choice is surprising given her recent involvement in the dismissal of a journalist who was investigating the Biden family.
RELATED: CBS seizes materials of fired journalist who investigated Hunter Biden
CBS News chief receives freedom of expression award after Herridge's firing
Reports over the past week have revealed that Cyprian Matthews was more than just an incidental player in Herridge's sacking.
Herridge was actively investigating an aspect of the Hunter Biden laptop scandal before she was fired, in addition to covering the House impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, special counsel Robert Hoare's report into his handling of classified documents, and the criminal charges against the first son. .
Jonathan Turley, a legal scholar and former CBS analyst, reported that Herridge “continued to pursue these stories despite reports of opposition from CBS executives, including CBS News President Ingrid Cibrian Matthews.”
The New York Post described Cibrian Matthews as “the boss who signed off on the controversial ouster of Katherine Herridge.”
Additionally, after letting Herridge go, CBS News was publicly called out by SAG-AFTRA, the union representing employees at the network, for confiscating files, computers and records locked in its office.
It was only after a public outcry – and several days – that CBS was able to return the secret files.
RELATED: CBS News returns classified files to investigative reporter, but skeptics wonder what they did with them during that time
Herridge is involved in an active First Amendment case
What makes the choice of Cyprian Matthews as a free speech advocate even more interesting is that the altercation Herridge was involved in also coincides with the latter's First Amendment court case.
Herridge faces large potential fines for protecting the identity of a source used in a report written in 2017 regarding a Chinese American scientist who was investigated by the FBI but has not been accused of wrongdoing.
In addition to the alleged involvement in curtailing Herridge's rights to free speech, Cyprian Matthews was also the subject of a human resources investigation in an effort to marginalize some reporters on the basis of skin color.
She was, according to a New York Post report, “accused of using her influence to promote minorities while unfairly marginalizing white journalists — a ‘woke’ and ‘divisive’ practice that sparked multiple employee complaints and a major internal investigation in 2021.”
The hypocrisy of the mainstream media never ceases to amaze.
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