A group representing journalists who cover the Defense Department is seeking the immediate restoration of press access for its members after a federal judge ruled on Friday that key parts of the department’s media policy were unconstitutional.
“Our clients and the public face ongoing, irreparable harm,” David Schulz, counsel for the group, the Pentagon Press Association, wrote in a letter, “so long as the experienced military reporters of the P.P.A. are excluded from the Pentagon while active combat operations are being conducted in multiple arenas.”
The Pentagon last year imposed new rules that empowered it to declare journalists “security risks” and revoke their press passes if they engaged in any conduct that the department believed threatened national security. Rather than comply with those restrictions, dozens of journalists surrendered their press passes and continued covering the military outside the Pentagon.
The New York Times accused the Pentagon of violating the First and Fifth Amendments with the new rules, and in his ruling on Friday, Judge Paul Friedman of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia sided with The Times.
He ordered the immediate reinstatement of press passes for seven Times journalists who had previously held press passes. The Times said in a statement on Saturday: “We are seeking to have our passes restored in keeping with the judge’s order. Our legal department sent a letter to Pentagon counsel today asking for restoration on Monday.”
In an interview, Mr. Schulz said he believed that the judge’s ruling meant that the Pentagon had a legal obligation to return passes to all of those who opted to turn them in last year. Pentagon correspondents have said that the press passes enhance their reporting on the military because they facilitate personal interactions with press officials and sources, though Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, last year curtailed the areas where reporters may roam without an escort.
The Pentagon did not respond to questions about the restoration of press passes. On Friday, Sean Parnell, the department’s chief spokesman, wrote on X, “We disagree with the decision and are pursuing an immediate appeal.” Any appeal from the government would most likely include a petition for a stay of Judge Friedman’s order.
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