Media outlets rebuff Pentagon press policy

Agencies Washington

Five major broadcast news networks announced on Tuesday that they will not sign the Pentagon’s new press policy before an afternoon deadline, joining several other media organisations that have objected to a set of rules that many journalists consider restrictive.

“Today, we join virtually every other news organisation 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,” NBC News said in a joint statement with ABC News, CBS News, CNN and Fox News Media.

“The policy is without precedent and threatens core journalistic protections. We will continue to cover the US military as each of our organisations has done for many decades, upholding the principles of a free and independent press,” the news organisations added. The new policy says reporters could have their press passes revoked if they publish information that has not been authorised for release by the Pentagon, even if it is unclassified.

The deadline to sign the new policy is 5 pm ET Tuesday, as per the Defense Department. Any media professional who declines to sign has 24 hours to turn in their Pentagon press credential and “clear their spaces” inside the sprawling government complex. “Pentagon access is a privilege, not a right,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a post on X on Monday. Hegseth was previously employed by Fox News, where he co-hosted “Fox & Friends Weekend.”