The Department of Defense is revamping its press access policies by evicting several long-standing news organizations from the Pentagon and reallocating their office space to right-leaning media outlets.
Starting February 14, prominent publications including The New York Times, NBC News, National Public Radio (NPR), and Politico will lose their offices in the Pentagon’s Correspondents’ Corridor. Their spaces will be reassigned to The New York Post, One America News Network (OANN), Breitbart News Network’s radio division, and HuffPost, according to a memo issued by Pentagon spokesperson John Ullyot on Friday.
The move has sparked controversy, with affected outlets questioning the rationale behind their removal. The Pentagon maintains that the decision is aimed at “broadening access” to underrepresented news organizations. However, the selection criteria remain unclear, and the changes align with the political preferences of the Trump administration, which has clashed with several of the evicted outlets.
NBC News, which shares ownership with the left-leaning MSNBC, expressed disappointment over the decision. “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 stated.
NPR also criticized the move, emphasizing its role in informing millions of Americans. “This decision interferes with the ability of millions of Americans to directly hear from Pentagon leadership,” NPR said in a statement, calling for expanded press access rather than selective evictions.
The shake-up follows the Senate confirmation of Pete Hegseth, a Trump ally, as Secretary of Defense. The New York Times previously reported allegations from Hegseth’s own mother about past misconduct, which she later retracted. The evictions also coincide with an FCC probe into NPR and PBS stations regarding sponsorship messages that may resemble commercial advertising, raising further concerns about media access under the Trump administration.
Adding to the intrigue, HuffPost, one of the newly awarded outlets, is partially owned by former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, a Trump appointee overseeing government efficiency. Meanwhile, The New York Post endorsed Trump during his last campaign.
While the Pentagon insists the changes are about inclusivity, critics argue that the move targets mainstream media organizations while favoring outlets aligned with Trump’s political agenda. The decision marks a significant shift in media access at the heart of U.S. military operations.
