WASHINGTON (AP) – Dozens of reporters disagreed with government coercion, turned in their access badges and left the Pentagon on Wednesday. work limitationswould keep journalists who cover the U.S. military away from positions of power. The U.S. government called the new rules “common sense.”
News organizations almost unanimously rejected new rules imposed by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth that would allow journalists to be expelled if they attempt to report information, classified or not, that Hegseth has not authorized for publication.
Many of the reporters waited to leave the building en masse to meet the Pentagon’s 4 p.m. deadline to leave the building. As the hour drew near, boxes of documents lined the hallways of the Pentagon, and reporters carried chairs, photocopiers, books, old photos and other items from the suddenly abandoned workshop to the parking lot. Shortly after 4 o’clock, about 40 to 50 journalists handed over their badges and left en masse.
“It’s sad, but I’m very proud of the press corps we’ve come together with,” said Nancy Youssef, a reporter for The Atlantic who has had a desk at the Pentagon since 2007. She carried a map of the Middle East in her car.
Still, footage of reporters effectively demonstrating against barriers to their jobs is unlikely to sway President Donald Trump’s supporters. Many of his supporters resent journalists and support his efforts to make their jobs harder. Trump is involved in legal battles new york times, CBS News, ABC News, wall street journal and Associated Press In the past year.
