WASHINGTON: Journalists covering the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) vacated their workspaces inside the Pentagon on Wednesday, returning their credentials after refusing to sign new press access rules that many view as a threat to press freedom.
The move followed a Tuesday deadline set by the Pentagon requiring media outlets to acknowledge the revised policy or lose their credentials and workspace privileges.
At least 30 news organisations, including Reuters and Fox News, declined to sign the agreement, arguing that the policy undermines transparency and restricts independent reporting on the world’s most powerful military.
The new policy requires journalists to acknowledge that they may be designated as “security risks” and have their press badges revoked if they are found soliciting information—classified or certain types of unclassified—that the Pentagon deems sensitive.
The Pentagon Press Association, which represents over 100 news organisations, called Wednesday “a dark day for press freedom,” warning that the restrictions signal a weakening U.S. commitment to transparency and accountability.
Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell defended the new rules, saying they merely require reporters to acknowledge understanding the policy. “This has caused reporters to have a full-blown meltdown, crying victim online,” he said, insisting the measures are necessary for national security.
Reporters described the Pentagon’s press area as unusually quiet as journalists dismantled equipment, removed furniture, and packed up broadcasting gear. “I’ve never seen that place not buzzing like a beehive,” said JJ Green, a veteran national security correspondent for WTOP radio.
Some journalists vowed that the new restrictions would not deter their reporting. “The irony is that Pentagon reporters aren’t having sensitive conversations in hallways — we’re doing it over encrypted apps,” one reporter said. The policy marks another step in expanding media restrictions under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, himself a former Fox News host.
