New York Times Files Second Lawsuit Over Pentagon Press Restrictions

The New York Times filed a second lawsuit against the Pentagon on Monday, arguing that a policy requiring journalists to have official escorts on Pentagon grounds is unconstitutional.

The Trump administration unveiled sweeping restrictions on press access at the Department of Defense, which the administration calls the Department of War, last September.

In a suit filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, the Times argued that an interim policy introduced in the spring imposed “utterly unreasonable” restrictions on journalists attempting to cover the department.

The lawsuit, brought on behalf of the New York Times and reporter Julian E. Barnes, names the Department of Defense, Secretary Pete Hegseth, Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell, and special adviser Timothy Parlatore as defendants.

In the complaint, the Times argues that “to report effectively on the Department, a reporter often must speak with over a dozen officials sitting in Public Affairs offices spread throughout the building.” For decades, the paper added, the Pentagon’s press access policies “reflected this physical reality” by allowing reporters unescorted access in unsecured corridors, “so that they can move from press office to press office and ask questions on short notice as events unfolded.”

But a policy the Pentagon adopted in March “breaks sharply from that history and tradition,” the paper argued. “Now, to ask even one question, Barnes and other reporters must call or email for an appointment, wait for a response, get an escort, ask their question, and return to the library outside the Pentagon – only to repeat the process for the next source.”

“Reporters must either forgo conversations or else spend hours chasing schedulers by phone and shuttling in and out of the building,” the complaint adds.

The Department of Defense did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Pentagon has previously said press access to the department is “a privilege extended by the government.”

The Times said that without “meaningful access to the Pentagon,” Barnes and other journalists and news organizations are “deprived of unique, newsworthy information that can only be obtained in person and through such exchanges.”

It added: “This loss is made more urgent by recent events that have exacerbated the importance of independent reporting, including the capture of the President of Venezuela, the Iran war, and Secretary Hegseth’s firings of multiple high ranking military officials.”

The lawsuit asks the court to force the Pentagon to lift the restriction.

This is the second time the Times has sued the Defense Department over press access. In December, it sued the Pentagon over newly imposed restrictions, which included requiring reporters to sign a form with strict rules on the “solicitation” of information from defense employees. The new restrictions prompted many leading news organizations to turn in their credentials in protest.

In March, a federal judge ruled that key parts of the new press policy were unconstitutional and undid much of the policy. But soon after, the Pentagon announced new press rules, including that it would permanently close a designated workspace for journalists, and also issued an “interim” policy requiring journalists to be escorted into the building.

In April, the judge ruled that the interim policy violated his court order, but the Pentagon appealed and asked the appeals court to allow the escort requirement to remain in place during the appeal. The appeals court allowed the escort policy to remain while the appeal proceeds.

In its new lawsuit filed Monday, the Times argued: “The Interim Policy is patently retaliatory, utterly unreasonable, and manifestly arbitrary and capricious.”