The media covering the Department of Defense (soon to be Department of War) is having a conniption and banding together to oppose the new restrictions that have been placed on their newsgathering. The end result of this defiance will be granting Secretary Pete Hegseth precisely what he wants.
There has been a long-simmering feud at the Pentagon since Hegseth stepped in as Secretary of War, and it reached a roiling boil this week. After a series of initial moves that saw longtime outlets displaced from the press room and other non-traditional changes, this has escalated during the past month with the release of a new set of press parameters.
After much barking last month upon the initial set of rule changes, there were meetings between the press office and a number of outlets. This resulted in a new batch of regulations which, while admittedly less restrictive than before, were still greeted as unacceptable by many correspondents and outlets. However, the Pentagon remained inflexible on the current policy issued.
Secretary Hegseth is insistent on restricting some of the access that had been granted inside the building, as well as tightening requirements for press credentialing, and threatening that these credentials could be revoked should an outlet dispense information not officially approved by the administration.
This move has rankled most outlets on site, resulting in a collective snit fit witnessed from almost all of the news sites covering the Pentagon. There has been a parade of outlets, including right-leaning sources like Fox News and Newsmax, that have posted their official statements declaring they refuse to sign off on the new standards.
The first dose of amusement is that these are not folks operating from the standpoint of strength. The posturing seen from the news sources is meant to sound bold and defiant, but they are not exactly going to see Hegseth buckle under pressure. As streiff pointed out Tuesday, the Secretary of War who wants to curtail leaking will be rather satisfied when faced with outlets declaring they will walk away.
Pete Hegseth Gives the Best Answer Ever to Pentagon Media That Have Balked at New Rules of Conduct
Adding to the media miasma on display are some of the arguments being made, which do not seem to follow logic. Yes, there is some concern when the press is being limited from reporting on governmental activity, but there is a differing standard that applies to the military, and specifically our intelligence services. The news organization Poynter expectantly goes over the various First Amendment permutations in this new set of guidelines
But other arguments defy logic. One of the primary concerns heard from the journos and their outlets is that they cannot abide the threat that their credentials might be pulled if they spread sensitive leaked intelligence. So their answer is to refuse to sign the new agreement, and thus forego their credentials voluntarily?!
CNN's Brian Stelter, for one, makes the bold proclamation that this new toughened environment will not deter the journalism and fact-finding. He tries to sound defiant, declaring that reporters will continue with their dogged journalism from beyond the 5-Wall sanctum.
Great, and if that is accurate, then all of the wailing being heard is rather neutered. In another perplexing comment on the matter, longtime Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr addresses the condition set by Secretary Hegseth to prevent reporters from having unfettered access in the building.
Well, if the case is that reporters had not been permitted to have free range throughout the Pentagon, then what is the reason to be so upset about his making a restriction to that effect? It is almost as if they simply resent being told what they cannot do, even when it is currently off the table. It sounds like a teenager getting upset at an 11:00 p.m. curfew and then declaring it is unacceptable, so they will not be going out a night at all to protest the parents.
Honestly, it is not a good look to have almost all of the press corps, including military trade publications, collectively opposing a policy in this manner. But the fact that they all want to walk off, rather than remain within the walls of the DoD and strive to ply their trade, seems a weaker position to take. The arguments have been mostly hollow, and the status in the end is not exactly a crippling result for the Pentagon officials.
Yes, Secretary Hegseth wanted to have more control and limit the leaks from his department. The group's effort to storm off means you just gave him precisely what he intended.
Editor’s Note: The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this.
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