The U.S. Defense Department will remove media offices from the Pentagon after a federal judge sided with The New York Times in a lawsuit challenging limits on reporters' access to the building, a department official announced Monday.
An area known as "Correspondents' Corridor" that reporters have used for decades to cover the U.S. military will close immediately, department spokesperson Sean Parnell said. Journalists will eventually be able to work from an "annex" outside the building, which he said "will be available when ready" without offering details on timeline.
The Pentagon Press Association called the announcement "a clear violation of the letter and spirit of last week's ruling."
What the Right Is Saying
Conservative commentators and some Pentagon officials have defended the new credentialing policy as necessary for security. Department spokesperson Sean Parnell said security concerns prompted restrictions on press access, a claim that journalists have rejected.
The Pentagon is pursuing an appeal of U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman's ruling. Parnell said the department disagrees with the decision and is continuing to restrict access based on what it describes as legitimate security protocols.
The current Pentagon press corps is now comprised mostly of conservative outlets that agreed to the new policy. Supporters of the credentialing changes have argued that they simply require journalists to operate within reasonable government guidelines.
Some conservative media figures have characterized the original credentialing requirements as appropriate oversight, noting that journalists were asked to follow policies similar to those applied to other government contractors and employees.
What the Left Is Saying
Progressive advocates and press freedom organizations condemned the Pentagon's decision to close the Correspondents' Corridor. The group Protect Public Trust called the move an escalation of what it described as the Trump administration's ongoing effort to marginalize independent journalism.
"At such a critical time, we ask why the Pentagon is choosing to restrict vital press freedoms that help inform all Americans," the Pentagon Press Association said in a statement, echoing concerns from journalists and transparency advocates who argued that restricting access undermines democratic accountability.
Democratic lawmakers have also raised objections. Several members of Congress wrote letters to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in January expressing concern about credentialing policies that they said appeared to favor certain outlets over others.
The American Civil Liberties Union has monitored the litigation closely, arguing that viewpoint-based restrictions on press access violate the First Amendment.
What the Numbers Show
The New York Times filed its lawsuit in December 2025 challenging the Pentagon's new credentialing policy. Seven Times journalists had their press credentials revoked under the new rules.
U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman ordered the Pentagon to reinstate credentials for seven Times journalists and struck down some of the agency's restrictions on news reporting. Friedman said the "undisputed evidence" shows the policy was designed to weed out "disfavored journalists" and replace them with those "willing to serve" the government.
The Pentagon's announcement affects the Correspondents' Corridor, a workspace that has been used by journalists covering the military for decades. The department did not specify when the annex outside the building will be completed.
The Associated Press has a separate lawsuit pending before a three-judge panel of the U.S. District Court of Appeals regarding access to presidential events.
The Bottom Line
The Pentagon's decision to remove media offices while appealing Judge Friedman's ruling represents an escalation in the ongoing dispute over press access during the Trump administration. The department contends security concerns justify the restrictions, while journalists and press freedom advocates argue the policy amounts to unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination.
The closure of Correspondents' Corridor means journalists will lose dedicated workspace inside the Pentagon, though they will still be able to attend press conferences and conduct interviews with public affairs escorts. The timeline for the proposed annex remains unclear.
The legal battles are likely to continue. The Pentagon is appealing the Times ruling, and the AP's separate lawsuit challenging its reduced access to presidential events remains before the appellate court. These cases could define the scope of executive branch authority over press credentials for years to come.