Many reporters accredited to the Pentagon have turned in their badges and walked out after refusing to sign new rules requiring prior approval of information by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
The rules limit where reporters can go without an official escort and convey “an unprecedented message of intimidation” for anyone in the Defense Department who might want to speak to a reporter without the approval of Hegseth’s team, the Pentagon Press Association said in a statement.
News organisations were concerned that signing the rules conveyed agreement with them, including to a restriction that they not report on any news — even if unclassified — without official approval and nearly unanimous in rejecting the new rules.
In a joint statement issued the day before on October 14, NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, and Fox News said the new policy is “without precedent and threatens core journalistic protections.”
“Today, we join virtually every other news organization in declining to agree to the Pentagon’s new requirements, which would restrict journalists’ ability to keep the nation and the world informed of important national security issues.”
They pledged: “We will continue to cover the U.S. military as each of our organizations has done for many decades, upholding the principles of a free and independent press.”
Even right-leaning news operations in addition to Fox like the Washington Times and the Wall Street Journal refused to sign the pledge with conservative broadcaster Newsmax claiming “the requirements are unnecessary and onerous.”
The only outlet known to have signed is One America News Network which entered the Pentagon press corps in February after Hegseth “reshuffled” workspaces inside the building and removed New York Times and NBC reporters, the first of many steps aimed at blocking journalistic scrutiny.
Pentagon reporters walk out – AP 16 October 2025
Pentagon reporters turn in their badges – The Guardian 15 October
Pentagon press corps gone but best military journalism to come? – Columbia Journalism Review 15 October
The last days of the Pentagon press corps – The Atlantic 15 October
Showdown on reporting restrictions – AP 8 October 2025
Reshuffling the Pentagon press – Columbia Journalism Review 5 February 2025
How MAGA cheerleaders have infiltrated the White House – The Guardian 4 October 2025
Donald Trump and “free speech” – The Guardian 27 September 2025
Trump attacks on the media
