New York Times sues Hegseth over Pentagon press crackdown

The New York Times is suing the Department of Defense over the Pentagon's new restrictions on press access, reports CNN.

The lawsuit, set to be filed in federal court in Washington, DC, names the Defense Department, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the chief Pentagon spokesman, Sean Parnell, as defendants.

The lawsuit seeks the repeal of a new policy, instituted in October that prompted Pentagon beat reporters to turn in their press passes rather than sign onto the restrictions.

"The policy is an attempt to exert control over reporting the government dislikes, in violation of a free press' right to seek information under their First and Fifth Amendment rights protected by the Constitution," Times spokesperson Charlie Stadtlander said. "The Times intends to vigorously defend against the violation of these rights, just as we have long done throughout administrations opposed to scrutiny and accountability," he added.

Attorneys for The Times seek a declaration that the new policy is unconstitutional on its face and an injunction barring its enforcement.

Hegseth and his aides will likely object, using the same national security arguments that accompanied October's restrictions.

News media industry leaders and other critics of the new policy said Hegseth's real intent is to impede independent coverage and scrutiny of the Trump administration.

Earlier this week, Hegseth welcomed dozens of pro-Trump influencers and content creators to the Pentagon for orientation sessions and press briefings.
The content creators, who all accepted the new restrictions at the core of The Times' lawsuit, have been billed by Hegseth's communication team as the "new Pentagon press corps," despite the group's general lack of military beat reporting experience.

Meanwhile, the veteran journalists who handed in their press passes in October continue to report on the Pentagon from outside its five walls.