Catherine Herridge launched her new investigative program “Straight to the Point” across the Los Angeles Times Media Group’s digital platforms and the veteran journalist’s official X account Sunday, with Harmeet Dhillon, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, as her first guest interview.
“Straight to the Point” is the latest offering on the fledgling LATMG, the branded umbrella organization unveiled in 2023 by LA Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong, who has emphasized expansion into independent and digital-first reporting. The biotech billionaire already has his own show on the platform, “Cancer Decoded,” announced in June as a partnership with Mark Halperin’s 2Way.
Herridge’s weekly series was revealed Wednesday. The Emmy-winning correspondent, long known for national security reporting, withstood a high-profile legal fight over confidentiality in 2023 when a federal judge held her in contempt for refusing to reveal sources behind a 2017 Fox News report on an FBI investigation involving a Chinese-American scientist. The former CBS correspondent was backed by several media outlets and free press advocates.
Each episode of “Straight to the Point” will include extended conversations with figures from government, business, technology, culture and national security, framed around the stated goal of providing context and clarity on high-impact issues with primary and on-the-record sources. LATMG is pairing the show with companion articles and highlight clips across its platforms.
Herridge said the collaboration gives independent reporters the resources to pursue fact-driven stories without interference.
“At a time when audiences are demanding independent journalism that is fair, thorough and authentic, LATMG and Dr. Soon-Shiong are taking a bold and innovative approach,” Herridge said in a statement. “They’re giving us the tools and platform to follow the facts wherever they lead.”
LATMG describes the new series as part of a broader effort to build a technology-driven media company that unifies its four major operations: the Los Angeles Times; LA Times Studios, which produces digital, audio and streaming content; NantStudios, a virtual-production arm; and NantGames, which develops esports and interactive digital experiences.
Dhillon’s Sunday night interview swept across a series of topics, including a “max exodus” of Civil Rights Division lawyers who refused to execute President Trump’s priorities and have since formed “support groups”; the top priority of combating antisemitism; the confirmation of an investigation into a swastika discovered at a Jewish day school in Brooklyn and more.
Watch the episode in the video above.
