The New York Times has filed a federal lawsuit against the Department of War, alleging that the Pentagon’s new media-access rules violate the Constitution.
The left-wing newspaper claims the Pentagon’s press policy allows officials to bar journalists who refuse to accept the department’s newsgathering terms.
The suit, filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C., lists the Times and reporter Julian Barnes as plaintiffs, and names the Department of War, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell as defendants.
NYT Claims Pentagon Is Silencing Journalists Who Don’t Accept Its Terms
According to the lawsuit, the Pentagon’s new policy unlawfully restricts press freedom by granting officials “standardless discretion” to punish reporters, including revoking their press badges, based on what the Times calls “incurably vague language” governing newsgathering practices.
The Times further alleges viewpoint discrimination, noting that reporters who signed the Pentagon’s pledge and were invited to Tuesday’s press briefing included several outspoken supporters of President Donald Trump.
The lawsuit cites Sherrill v. Knight (1972), which requires due process for press credential decisions, and Karem v. Trump (2020), in which the D.C. Circuit ruled that then–Playboy writer Brian Karem’s due process rights were violated when his White House press pass was revoked during the first Trump administration.
In its filing, the Times argues:
“The policy—which vests Department officials with unbridled discretion to immediately suspend and ultimately revoke a reporter’s PFAC for engaging in lawful newsgathering, both on and off Pentagon grounds, or for reporting any information Department officials have not approved—is neither reasonable nor viewpoint-neutral.”
The lawsuit adds:
“The Policy marks a radical departure from longstanding tradition, violates the Due Process Clause and the First Amendment, and is inflicting irreparable harm on The Times and its reporters, including Barnes, and on the American public.”
NYT Reporters Risk Losing Credentials
Times spokesperson Charlie Stadtlander said in a statement:
“As a result of the Department’s implementation of this policy earlier this year, journalists reporting on the U.S. military face loss of their press credentials for doing nothing more than bringing facts to light on behalf of the public, one of the core tenets of the free press in a democracy.”
Stadtlander continued:
“The Pentagon’s policy has been widely rejected by dozens of news organizations.
“The Times stands with fellow news organizations across digital, print, and broadcast media, including many conservative outlets, in strongly opposing this unprecedented policy.”
He also argued that the policy represents an attempt to restrict coverage the government dislikes:
“The journalism produced by The Times and other outlets who refused to sign this policy provides critical information to the American public about the actions the U.S. military undertakes in their name and financial expense, and serves members of the military by reporting on matters of health, safety, housing and foreign deployments.
“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.
“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.”
“Propagandists” Who “Stopped Telling the Truth”
A senior Times attorney claims that the paper had discussed joining forces with other outlets, but ultimately chose to move forward alone, though it welcomes other lawsuits.
The attorney said the decision came after Tuesday’s Pentagon press briefing in which press secretary Kingsley Wilson referred to excluded news outlets as “propagandists” who “stopped telling the truth.”
The attorney called that statement:
“Potent evidence of viewpoint discrimination, content discrimination that violates the First Amendment.”
Press Groups and Media Outlets Condemn the Policy
The Pentagon Press Association backed the lawsuit, arguing the War Department’s policy “is antithetical to a free and independent press and prohibited by the First Amendment.”
Corporate media outlets also previously united in opposition when the policy was unveiled in October.
In a joint statement, ABC News, CBS News, CNN, FOX News Media, and NBC News claimed they are just trying to keep the “world informed,” saying:
“[W]e join virtually every other news organization 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.
“The policy is without precedent and threatens core journalistic protections.
“We will continue to cover the U.S. military as each of our organizations has done for many decades, upholding the principles of a free and independent press.”
READ MORE – Democrat Senator Accuses Pete Hegseth of ‘War Crimes’ Over Drug Cartel Strikes
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