Among the core foundational precedents that make the United States the country that it is today, there are few more important than the freedom of the press. Freedom of the press decrees that the American people have a right to know what is happening in their government and the area around them. It is the single most prominent tool for stopping corruption, violations of our constitution and the silencing of individuals involved in such things. Without press freedom, the United States simply would not be able to call itself a free country.
One might think it’s common sense for everyone to abide by and respect the freedom of the press. However, in light of the Trump administration, this is actually not the case. Recently, the Pentagon put forth a policy to crack down on independent reporting within the building and limit reporters’ ability to ask questions about defense operations. The Pentagon is currently headed by Trump-appointed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
According to the AP, “A federal judge agreed Friday to block the Trump administration from enforcing a policy limiting news reporters’ access to the Pentagon, agreeing with The New York Times that key portions of the new rules are unlawful.” The document, which was sent to the press, detailed that “DoW [Department of War] information must be approved for public release by an appropriate authorizing official before it is released, even if it is unclassified.”
U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman denied the Pentagon’s demands under the fact that “the policy ‘fails to provide fair notice of what routine, lawful journalistic practices will result in the denial, suspension, or revocation’ of Pentagon press credentials”, according to AP.
“Those who drafted the First Amendment believed that the nation’s security requires a free press and an informed people and that such security is endangered by governmental suppression of political speech. That principle has preserved the nation’s security for almost 250 years. It must not be abandoned now,” Friedman wrote, according to AP.
The New York Times, the outlet that sued the Pentagon and Hegseth over the proposed limits, will be going back to court as the new policy set forward does not comply with Friedman’s order. It is incredibly alarming that this lawsuit had to take place against such proposed limits and that Hegseth’s team continues to fight for them to stay in place.
While Hegseth and those who put forward the limits say they did so because it is dangerous for the country if information regarding war and defense is given out without discretion, it is overwhelmingly clear that their true intention was to limit the amount of information news outlets whose reporting does not align with the political bias of the MAGA party could have access to and report on.
Friedman highlighted this in his decision to side with the NYT, saying, “he recognizes that ‘national security must be protected, the security of our troops must be protected, and war plans must be protected. But especially in light of the country’s recent incursion into Venezuela and its ongoing war with Iran, it is more important than ever that the public have access to information from a variety of perspectives about what its government is doing—so that the public can support government policies, if it wants to support them; protest, if it wants to protest; and decide based on full, complete, and open information who they are going to vote for in the next election,’” according to AP.
War times are the times in a country in which violent, unlawful acts are most likely to be committed on non-U.S. citizens and covered up by the government. This can be seen in the estimated 1,100 Iranian people who have been murdered in the war so far, a number which the Trump administration has so far refused to acknowledge or take accountability for. It is critical now more than ever that reporters can access the information they need to do right by the American people and inform us on just what our country is up to overseas.
Unfortunately, the common argument of refusing to listen to “liberal, biased news” that members of the MAGA party routinely use to justify their iron-clad beliefs is losing any and all accountability faster than the speed of light. It is a fact that various news outlets on both sides of the American political spectrum hold biases that often cloud their ability to deliver objective reporting. However, when the literal Secretary of State is proposing limits specifically designed to target “left-leaning” news organizations, regardless of how accredited they are, from reporting with due diligence solely to benefit the agenda of the MAGA party, it becomes quite difficult to point the finger the opposite way any longer.
But of course, members of the party will continue to do it anyway. That’s simply how cults operate.
The American people need to be paying attention to moves like this, which are designed to infringe upon our First Amendment rights in the name of party warfare. Among the pillars that hold the U.S. up above the pit of fascism and totalitarianism that waits below us, the freedom of the press pillar is arguably the strongest, most integral one. When that pillar falls, you can best believe that the others will follow suit. We need to stay informed and rally to protect our First Amendment rights before we no longer have the ability to do so.
Serena Taylor can be contacted at
