The Pentagon’s new policy is terrible, and the MAGA media is right to oppose it

No one is happy with the Pentagon’s new press policy.

Earlier this week, media outlets spanning the political spectrum almost universally refused to sign a memorandum issued by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that requires defense reporters to pledge not to seek unauthorized information.

“Information must be approved for public release by an appropriate authorized official before it is released, even if it is not confidential,” the memo states.

Hegseth is, of course, within his right to prevent his employees from leaking stories to journalists, to the extent possible. Federal officials who leak classified documents can be prosecuted under current law, although it is often in the public’s interest to do so anyway. But if we are to do anything, government policy should place restrictions on government employees – not on journalists, or the general public. Reporters would apparently try to get Pentagon officials to provide information, even if it had not been “cleared for public release” by Hegseth’s personal public relations department.

This is so obvious that it is virtually nonpartisan, which is why conservative news outlets like Fox News, Newsmax, The Daily Caller, Real Clear Politics, and the Washington Examiner have joined liberal and mainstream organizations in rejecting the agreement. In fact, the only outlet that agreed to the Pentagon’s terms was One America News Network (OANN), which is actually linked to the administration; Cary Lake, supervisor of the government-funded Voice of America, announced earlier this year that the platform would use content from OANN. (Regardless, this is a very good argument against government-funded media, whether right- or left-leaning.)

The major broadcasters issued a joint statement that said in part: “This policy is unprecedented and threatens basic 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.”

In response, the department is trying to split hairs.

“The policy is not asking them to agree, just to acknowledge that they understand what our policy is,” Sean Parnell, a Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement. “This has caused journalists to have a complete meltdown, with one victim crying online. We stand by our policy because it is what is best for our forces and the national security of this country.”

But whether it’s approving or acknowledging the policy, it comes down to the same thing: The Pentagon doesn’t want reporters asking questions and getting answers without Hegseth’s approval. This is clearly absurd, and not in the interests of liberals, conservatives, or, most importantly, the American public.

The reason liberals would reject such a policy is fairly clear: Journalists critical of Trump should feel free to question the administration. But even MAGA-friendly reporters don’t want to feel reluctant to do their job. Imagine if a conservative outlet obtained information that some defense subdepartments were still using DEI for hiring, had issued policy directives that conflicted with the America First initiative, or had simply embezzled taxpayer dollars. (This last example is not theoretical at all: the Pentagon failed seven audits in a row!)

It might be embarrassing for Hegseth to have this happen under his supervision, and he might want to withhold a news report from him; His incentive will be to refuse to allow information about the situation to be published, or to publish it in a way that satisfies the administration’s point of view.

But conservative news organizations shouldn’t play by these rules: They would be doing their readers, viewers, and subscribers a disservice if they did.

Here was Ron Paul – who is no fan of the mainstream media – explaining why this new policy of restricting journalists’ access is so bad for freedom.

To the Trump administration’s credit, it has made space for new media outlets, podcasters and social media influencers in the press pool. President Trump and his communications team recognize that more and more Americans are getting news and information from a more diverse set of content providers taking advantage of all the new platforms available to them: YouTube, X, Spotify, Instagram, Substack, Rumble, etc. The people who make content for those platforms should have a seat at the table — out with the old and in with the new.

But as we move to new media, weeding out what didn’t work in the old media, we don’t want to create a new media environment that fails to deliver reliable reporting or hold government accountable. Just because Hegseth is so beloved by MAGA doesn’t mean he should be immune from scrutiny. Governors need to make sure the administration lives up to its priorities, and if they can’t ask the questions, we can’t get the answers.

Robbie Soave co-hosts the commentary show “Rising” on The Hill and is a senior editor at Reason Magazine. This column is an edited version of his daily commentary.