Major US and International News Outlets Lose Pentagon Access After Refusing New Media Rules

Dozens of major news organisations, from The New York Times and The Washington Post to Fox News and Reuters, have been stripped of their Pentagon press access after refusing to sign a new 21-page set of guidelines that journalists say could criminalise national security reporting.

The Pentagon’s deadline expired on Wednesday afternoon, effectively locking out more than 30 outlets that declined to accept the new terms. The rules were introduced under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, a former Fox News host appointed by President Donald Trump, and have been condemned by media watchdogs as an unprecedented attempt to restrict press freedom.

According to the memo, reporters must now formally acknowledge, in writing, a policy that limits their movement inside the Pentagon and forbids “soliciting information” from staff without approval. It also threatens legal consequences for publishing certain classified or even unclassified materials, despite the Supreme Court’s 1971 ruling in New York Times Co. v. United States, which upheld the right to publish the Pentagon Papers.

“The Department of Defense has begun confiscating media badges from virtually every news organisation in America,” said the Pentagon Press Association, representing over 100 outlets. “Reporters were told to sign a policy that implicitly threatens them with prosecution. This is an attack on the free press.”

The new rules replace a one-page document that previously covered only security and logistical procedures for entry. Now, journalists who refuse to sign are barred from Pentagon briefings and denied physical access to the building.

In a statement Monday, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell dismissed the backlash, accusing journalists of “crying victim online” and insisting the changes were “what’s best for our troops and national security.”