WASHINGTON — According to a press release from the American Civil Liberties Union, the organization filed a brief Friday, Jan. 16, in support of The New York Times’ lawsuit against the Department of Defense, arguing that a new Pentagon press policy threatens the First Amendment. The ACLU said the policy is designed “to banish journalists for disfavored coverage” and constitutes an unconstitutional attack on free expression and democratic accountability.
According to an article by The New York Times, the company stated in a court filing that the new press policy “aims to suppress independent journalism that seeks to report any information beyond what the department has approved for public release.” The case is proceeding on a fast-tracked schedule, with both sides filing a motion to skip discovery.
Times newsroom lawyer David McCraw said discovery would be unnecessary because the constitutional issues are clear from the policy itself. “We think that it’s so obvious that the policy as written — the words on paper — constitute a constitutional violation that we don’t think there is a need for the court to engage in further fact-finding,” McCraw said. The Times reported that U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman is scheduled to hear the case March 6, when a decision on the validity of the policy is expected.
The Times article also reported that the Pentagon declined to comment on the active litigation and described the press restrictions as a “common-sense” security measure. It noted that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has pushed to roll back access and privileges Pentagon reporters had enjoyed for years as part of an effort to limit coverage of the department’s activities.
Rather than complying with the new restrictions, many Pentagon reporters turned in their press passes and continued reporting from outside the building, according to The Times.
According to the ACLU press release, “The New York Times was one of several major outlets to turn in their press access badges at the Pentagon in October in protest of the new rules from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.” The new Department of Defense policy seeks to “prohibit reporters from soliciting, receiving, or publishing information that is not authorized by DoD, even if the information is not classified.”
The lawsuit contends that the policy is unconstitutional and violates both First and Fifth Amendment protections.
The ACLU argued that restrictions on press freedom undermine government accountability. ACLU legal director Scott Michelman said the policy attempts to transform journalists into government amplifiers rather than independent watchdogs.
“Journalists are not mouthpieces for government propaganda, but that’s exactly what these new rules try to turn them into,” Michelman said. “This administration’s relentless pursuit of ideological conformity through its repeated attacks on the press ignores the lessons of our history and the commands of our Constitution.”
The ACLU also pointed to an amicus brief it previously filed in an Associated Press lawsuit against the federal government, which stated that “unchecked incursions on press freedoms frequently lead to greater repression, as demonstrated by American history and the modern experience of other nations.” The organization said the brief further documents retaliatory actions taken by the Trump administration against journalists who published coverage unfavorable to the government.
The ACLU concluded its press release by urging the court to rule against the Pentagon, warning that the press policy could have sweeping consequences by preventing journalists from sharing critical information with the public.
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