Journalists turn in access badges, exit Pentagon rather than agree to new reporting rules

Dozens of reporters turned successful entree badges and exited the Pentagon connected Wednesday (October 16, 2025) alternatively than hold to government-imposed restrictions connected their work, pushing journalists who screen the American subject further from the spot of its power. The nation's enactment called the caller rules "common sense" to assistance modulate a "very disruptive" press.

News outlets were astir unanimous successful rejecting caller rules imposed by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth that would permission journalists susceptible to expulsion if they sought to study connected accusation — classified oregon different — that had not been approved by Mr. Hegseth for release.

Many of the reporters waited to permission unneurotic astatine a 4 p.m. deadline acceptable by the Defence Department to get retired of the building. As the hr approached, boxes of documents lined a Pentagon corridor and reporters carried chairs, a copying machine, books and aged photos to the parking batch from abruptly abandoned workspaces. Shortly aft 4, astir 40 to 50 journalists near unneurotic aft handing successful badges.

"It is sad, but I americium besides truly arrogant of the property corps that we stuck together," said Nancy Youssef, a newsman for The Atlantic who has had a table astatine the Pentagon since 2007. She took a representation of West Asia retired to her car.

It is unclear what applicable interaction the caller rules volition have, though quality organisations vowed that they would proceed robust sum of the subject nary substance the vantage point.

Images of reporters efficaciously demonstrating against barriers to their enactment are improbable to determination supporters of President Donald Trump, galore of whom resent journalists and cheer his efforts to marque their jobs harder. Mr. Trump has been progressive successful tribunal fights against The New York Times, CBS News, ABC News, the Wall Street Journal and The Associated Press successful the past year.

Trump supports the caller rules

Speaking to reporters astatine the White House connected Tuesday, Mr. Trump backed his defence secretary's caller rules. "I deliberation helium finds the property to beryllium precise disruptive successful presumption of satellite peace," Mr. Trump said. "The property is precise dishonest."

Even earlier issuing his caller property policy, Mr. Hegseth, a erstwhile Fox News Channel host, has systematically choked disconnected the travel of information. He has held lone 2 ceremonial property briefings, banned reporters from accessing galore parts of the sprawling Pentagon without an escort and launched investigations into leaks to the media.

He has called his caller rules "common sense" and said the request that journalists motion a papers outlining the rules means they admit the caller rules, not needfully hold to them. Journalists spot that arsenic a favoritism without a difference.

"What they are truly doing, they privation to spoon-feed accusation to the journalist, and that would beryllium their story. That is not journalism," Jack Keane, a retired U.S. Army wide and Fox News analyst, said connected Mr. Hegseth's erstwhile network.

When helium served, Mr. Keane said helium required caller brigadier generals to instrumentality a people connected the relation of the media successful a ideology truthful they would not beryllium intimidated and besides spot reporters arsenic a conduit to the American public. “There were times erstwhile stories were done that made maine flinch a small bit," helium said. "But that is usually due to the fact that we had done thing that was not arsenic bully arsenic we should person done it."

Ms. Youssef said it made nary consciousness to motion connected to rules that said reporters should not solicit subject officials for information. "To hold to not solicit accusation is to hold to not beryllium a journalist," she said. "Our full extremity is soliciting information."

Reporting connected U.S. subject affairs volition proceed — from a greater distance

Several reporters posted connected societal media erstwhile they turned successful their property badges.

"It's specified a tiny thing, but I was truly arrogant to spot my representation up connected the partition of Pentagon correspondents," wrote Heather Mongilio, a newsman for USNINews, which covers the Navy. "Today, I'll manus successful my badge. The reporting volition continue."

Ms. Mongilio, Ms. Youssef and others emphasised that they volition proceed to bash their jobs nary substance wherever their desks are. Some sources volition proceed to talk with them, though they accidental immoderate successful the subject person been chilled by threats from Pentagon leadership.

In an essay, NPR reporter Tom Bowman noted the galore times helium had been tipped disconnected by radical helium knew from the Pentagon and portion embedded successful the subject astir what was happening, adjacent if it contradicted authoritative lines enactment retired by leadership. Many recognize the media's role.

"They knew the American nationalist deserved to cognize what's going on," Mr. Bowman wrote. "With nary reporters capable to inquire questions, it seems the Pentagon enactment volition proceed to trust connected slick societal media posts, cautiously orchestrated abbreviated videos and interviews with partisan commentators and podcasters. No 1 should deliberation that's bully enough."

The Pentagon Press Association, whose 101 members correspond 56 quality outlets, has spoken retired against the rules. Organisations from crossed the media spectrum, from bequest organisations similar The Associated Press and The New York Times to outlets similar Fox and the blimpish Newsmax, told their reporters to permission alternatively of signing the caller rules.

Only the blimpish One America News Network signed on. Its absorption apt believes it volition person greater entree to Trump medication officials by showing its support, Gabrielle Cuccia, a erstwhile Pentagon newsman who was fired by OANN earlier this twelvemonth for penning an online file criticising Mr. Hegseth's media policies, told the AP in an interview.