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The US Military Spent $6 Billion in the Past 3 Years to Recruit and Retain TroopsThe US Military Spent $6 Billion in the Past 3 Years to Recruit and Retain Troops

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Hegseth orders escorts for reporters at Pentagon

 


US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday issued new regulations under which journalists will be required to have official escorts if they wish to access much of the Pentagon building.


Under the new rules, accredited reporters will not be allowed into most of the Department of Defense headquarters without official approval and a government escort.


Members of the Pentagon press corps are also soon to be issued with new credentials that, according to the order, will identify them more prominently as press representatives.


"While the Department remains committed to transparency, the Department is equally obligated to protect CSNI (classified intelligence) and sensitive information — the unauthorized disclosure of which could put the lives of US Service members in danger," Hegseth said in a memorandum.


The new restrictions follow several leaks from the Department of Defense that caused considerable embarrassment to the administration.


Under previous US administrations, the press had had easy access to non-secured and unclassified swaths of the building.


The Pentagon Press Association criticized the move by Hegseth, characterizing it as an attack on press freedom.


"There is no way to sugarcoat it. Today's memo by Secretary Hegseth appears to be a direct attack on the freedom of the press and America's right to know what its military is doing," it said in a statement.  

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