Pentagon Orders Prepublication Approval for All Coverage, Tightens Access Rules

Overview

• A 17-page memo issued late this week requires an authorized official to approve any material about the Department of War before publication, including unclassified information and reporting from anonymous internal sources.
• Credentialed reporters must sign new information-security forms, accept escorts and stay within designated areas, with noncompliance risking suspension or revocation of building access within weeks.
• Roughly 90 journalists are being asked to commit in writing to the rules and will receive newly labeled badges with the word “MEDIA” in red for identification.
• Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell described the requirements as basic safeguards for sensitive information, and Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters to follow the rules or leave the building.
• The policy follows earlier removals of traditional outlets from Pentagon workspaces, and the National Press Club has called for the directive to be revoked as a threat to independent reporting.