Hegseth’s press policy at the Pentagon was ruled unconstitutional, and his bold new move has the New York Times sharpening its legal claws

The Pentagon has rolled out a new set of restrictions for journalists, even after a judge ruled parts of its previous media policy unconstitutional. The New York Times says it is heading back to court over the new rules.

Last Friday, Judge Paul Friedman of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that the Pentagon’s earlier media policy, put in place by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, violated the First Amendment. Those original rules allowed the Pentagon to label journalists as security risks and revoke their press passes if they were seen as a threat to national security.

According to The Daily Beast, many reporters from various outlets surrendered their press passes rather than follow the new rules. In their place, the administration brought in figures like Laura Loomer and Mike Lindell, who are seen as more supportive of the administration.

The judge’s ruling makes clear that blocking critical voices from the Pentagon is editorial discrimination, not a security measure

Judge Friedman acknowledged the need to protect national security, troops, and war plans. But he also stressed that, “especially in light of the country’s recent incursion into Venezuela and its ongoing war with Iran, it is more important than ever that the public have access to information from a variety of perspectives about what its government is doing.” 

He also pointed out that the policy’s “true purpose and practical effect” was “to weed out disfavored journalists, those who were not, in the department’s view, ‘on board and willing to serve’, and replace them with news entities that are.” This ruling is part of a broader pattern of federal judges pushing back against Trump administration policies.

Despite the ruling, the Defense Department is not backing down. Sean Parnell, the department’s assistant secretary for public affairs, posted on X that the Pentagon disagrees with the judge’s decision and plans to appeal it. He also stated that, “In the interim and in compliance with the court’s order,” he had signed a revised “Pentagon Reservation In-Brief for Media Members,” effective immediately.

The new policy includes the closure of the Correspondents’ Corridor inside the main building, moving the press workspace to an external annex outside the Pentagon. All journalists who enter the building will now need to be escorted by authorized personnel, making it harder to gather information independently.

The New York Times, which originally filed the lawsuit, is not accepting the claim that the new policy complies with the judge’s order. Times spokesperson Charlie Stadtlander stated, “The new policy does not comply with the judge’s order. It continues to impose unconstitutional restrictions on the press. We will be going back to court.” 

Courts have recently been active in blocking legally questionable White House decisions, and this case looks set to continue that trend. Judge Friedman’s ruling specifically ordered the Pentagon to immediately restore the press passes of seven Times journalists. 

As of writing, the department had not done so. Defense Secretary Hegseth, who was a Fox News host before joining the Cabinet, has taken an openly hostile stance toward the press, and recently told troops, “President Trump and I have your back – always. Through fire, through criticism, through fake news, through everything. We unleash you because you are the best, most powerful, most lethal fighting force the world has ever seen.”