New rules that limit the access of journalists in the Pentagon and appear to condition entry into the building on agreement to restrictions have led to a standoff between the press and the Trump administration’s defense department. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s team characterizes it as an effort to protect national security, but journalists see it as an effort to exert control and avoid embarrassing stories. The new policy says defense department information “must be approved for public release by appropriate officials, even if unclassified. Classified material faces even tighter restrictions. The department wants journalists to sign a letter agreeing to, or acknowledging, the new rules, but there is resistance.
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