Major News Outlets Reject Pentagon's New Press Policy

14 HOURS AGO·UPDATED 13 HOURS AGO

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Above: Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, on Sept. 22, 2025. Image copyright: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

The Spin

Left narrative

Hegseth's authoritarian press gag order forces reporters to surrender First Amendment rights or face Pentagon banishment. Every major outlet, from NPR to Newsmax, rejected these Orwellian rules requiring government permission to publish even unclassified information. This isn't journalism policy — it's authoritarian state media control that violates constitutional press freedom.

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Right narrative

Pentagon access is a privilege requiring basic security measures, not a constitutional right to roam sensitive areas freely. The new policy simply requires press badges and escorts in classified zones, and prohibits soliciting policy violations — standard rules at every military installation. Mainstream media lies about pre-approval requirements for stories to manufacture outrage over common-sense security protocols.

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