Journalism Professor Headlines Discussion on First Amendment, Quoted in a Columbia Journalism Review article. Toni Locy was among three expert panelists to discuss the First Amendment at the National Press Club and was recently quoted on her professional experiences.

By Brian Laubscher
August 6, 2026

Toni Locy, professor of journalism at Washington and Lee University, was recently asked to recount her experience with the First Amendment and protection of confidential sources through a media article and a public discussion.

Locy was interviewed for an article titled “Private Matters,” which was published on July 15 by the Columbia Journalism Review. The focus of the article is the current case involving former Fox News reporter Catherine Herridge, who was ordered by a district court judge to reveal her confidential sources for a story published in 2017 or face potential fines.

Locy faced a similar situation in 2008 for stories she had written for USA Today in 2003. She was reporting on the FBI’s investigation into the 2001 anthrax attacks that left five people dead and 17 others infected. Steven Hatfill, who was the initial focus of the investigation, sued the FBI and Department of Justice under the Federal Privacy Act. Locy was subpoenaed as a witness in the case and ordered to reveal her confidential sources. She refused because she promised to protect her source’s identities.

The judge in the case held Locy in contempt of court and imposed daily fines until she revealed her sources while banning anyone from helping her pay them. Locy appealed the judge’s order, and a three-judge panel granted her request. While the appeal was pending, Hatfill, who was never charged with a crime, settled his case.

Locy spoke of her experiences on July 21, just days after the Columbia Journalism Review article was published, when she was one of three panelists featured in a discussion on the First Amendment held at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Herridge opened the event by reading a prepared statement about her case, after which Steve Herman, former Voice of America White House bureau chief, and Bill Bernardoni, nationally syndicated radio host,  moderated the panel. Locy was joined by media lawyer Laura Handman and attorney Eric Hageman.

Locy has been a member of the W&L faculty since 2008 and served as the department head for the Department of Journalism and Mass Communications from 2017 to 2019. During a 25-year career as a journalist, she reported and wrote for the Pittsburgh Press, Philadelphia Daily News, the Boston Globe, the Washington Post, U.S. News & World Report, USA Today and the Associated Press.

She has received numerous awards for her work, including the Society of Professional Journalists’ First Amendment Award, the National Press Club’s John Aubuchon Press Freedom Award and the Press Club of Western Pennsylvania’s Service to Journalism Award. She also authored the book “Covering America’s Courts: A Clash of Rights.”

If you know a W&L faculty member who has done great, accolade-worthy things, tell us about them! Nominate them for an accolade.