Press vs. Pentagon: Major News Outlets Revolt Against Hegseth’s Journalist Pledge| Full List Inside

Amid sharp backlash, many major media organizations have publicly refused to sign the Pentagon’s new press restrictions, arguing that the rules threaten journalistic freedom. Below is a roundup of key outlets rejecting the pledge, and one outlier that has accepted it.News outlets’ stances on the Pentagon’s new media rulesSigning• One America NewsRefusing to sign•ABC News•Air & Space Forces Magazine• AL-Monitor• Associated Press• The Atlantic• Aviation Week• Axios• Bloomberg News• Breaking Defense• C4ISRNET• CBS News• CNN• Defense Daily• Defense News• Defense One• The Economist• Federal Times• The Financial Times• Fox News• The Guardian• The Hill• HuffPost• Military Times• MSNBC• NBC News• The New York Times• Newsmax• NPR• PBS Newshour• Politico• RealClearPolitics• Reuters• Task & Purpose• USNI News• The Wall Street Journal• The Washington Examiner• The Washington Post• The Washington Times• WTOPContext & FalloutThe Pentagon’s draft rules would require journalists to stop gathering information not pre‑cleared by the department, a mandate seen by many as a direct violation of press independence. The Pentagon Press Association and free press advocates have called the policy an “intimidation” tactic aimed at chilling journalism on national security.Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, a former Fox News host, had warned that those refusing to sign would have their press credentials revoked. In response to the pushback, the Pentagon offered a revised version that removes the requirement to submit writings in advance but still restricts reporting on unauthorized information and outlines behaviors that could label a journalist a “security risk.”Several news organizations have already consulted legal counsel or retained lawyers to combat possible enforcement. The Pentagon, for its part, claims the pledge only asks reporters to “acknowledge they understand” the policy, not to agree with it, and accuses outlets of moving the goalposts at the last minute.