The Trump administration has announced a controversial media rotation policy that removes The New York Times, NPR, NBC News, and Politico from Pentagon office spaces. The decision, described as an effort to increase access for other media outlets, has been met with backlash from journalists and media advocacy groups.
In a move described as unprecedented, the Trump administration announced on Friday that it will remove four major media organizations from their dedicated office spaces in the Pentagon. The decision affects The New York Times, National Public Radio (NPR), NBC News, and Politico, which must vacate their offices by February 14.
According to a memo outlining a “New Annual Media Rotation Program,” the vacated spaces will be reassigned to the New York Post, One America News Network (OANN), Breitbart News Network, and HuffPost.
“Each year going forward, one outlet from print, online, television, and radio will rotate out of the Pentagon to allow a new outlet from the same medium that has not had the unique opportunity to report as a resident member of the Pentagon Press Corps,” the memo states.
Media Outlets React
NBC News expressed disappointment in the decision, emphasizing the challenge it poses to their reporting.
“We’re disappointed by the decision to deny us access to a broadcasting booth at the Pentagon that we’ve used for many decades,” an NBC spokesperson said. “Despite the significant obstacles this presents to our ability to gather and report news in the national public interest, we will continue to report with the same integrity and rigor NBC News always has.”
The New York Times also criticized the move, calling it a step that impedes journalistic access.
“Steps designed to impede access are clearly not in the public interest,” the Times said in a statement.
NPR urged the Defense Department to expand office space instead of limiting access to certain outlets.
“This decision interferes with the ability of millions of Americans to directly hear from Pentagon leadership, and with NPR’s public interest mission to serve Americans who turn to our network of local public media stations in all 50 states,” NPR stated.
Politico has not yet responded to the decision.
Pentagon Defends Move
More than two dozen news organizations currently operate out of the Pentagon, reporting on military affairs and national security. The Defense Department insists that the move does not restrict press access, but rather offers other media outlets an opportunity to cover the Pentagon from inside the building.
“To be clear, the outlets that vacate the spaces loaned them by the Secretary of Defense will remain full members of the Pentagon Press Corps,” said John Ullyot, Acting Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs. “The only change will be giving up their physical workspaces in the building to allow new outlets to have their turn to become resident members of the Pentagon Press Corps.”
Journalism Groups Condemn the Decision
The Pentagon Press Association (PPA), which represents journalists covering the Defense Department, condemned the move as a direct attack on press freedom.
“We are greatly troubled by this unprecedented move by the DOD to single out highly professional media outlets,” the association stated.
Reuters, which also maintains a Pentagon office, reported on the changes, noting that correspondent Phil Stewart is a member of the PPA’s four-member board of directors.
The media reshuffling comes amid ongoing concerns about press freedom under the Trump administration. Critics argue that removing long-established outlets from Pentagon offices could limit public access to critical military and defense information.