Press photographers are no longer permitted to take photos inside the Pentagon press briefing room after several outlets published \u201cunflattering\u201d photos of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, two people familiar with the situation told the Washington Post. <\/p>\n
On March 2, Hegseth held a press conference with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to brief the press on the U.S. and Israel military strikes on Iran that killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in February. <\/p>\n
Shortly after, wire service photographers \u2013 such as those from the Associated Press, Reuters and Getty Images \u2013 published photos of the defense secretary speaking with the media. This is typical for nearly all press conferences held by a government official. <\/p>\n
But afterward, members of Hegseth\u2019s staff reportedly told colleagues they did not like the way the defense secretary looked. In press briefings on March 4 and March 10, photographers were not permitted inside. <\/p>\n
Pentagon spokesperson Kingsley Wilsonsaid in a statement that in order to use the briefing room \u201ceffectively,\u201d only one representative per uncredentialed news outlet was permitted inside. <\/p>\n
Hegseth\u2019s staff reportedly thought the pictures from the March 2 press conference were \u2018unflattering\u2019 (AP)\u201cPhotographs from the briefings are immediately released online for the public and press to use. If that hurts the business model for certain news outlets, then they should consider applying for a Pentagon press credential,\u201d Wilson wrote. <\/p>\n
Last year, the Pentagon implemented a new rule for media that required credentialed outlets to agree to a new policy that states reporters cannot gather or publish information from the Defense Department that is not explicitly authorized. <\/p>\n
That includes declassified information or off-the-record conversations, no matter where the information was obtained. <\/p>\n
Many mainstream media outlets refused to sign the agreement, finding the new rules oppressive. As a result, major broadcasters such as Fox News, ABC News, CBS News, CNN and NBC News; legacy newspapers such as the Associated Press, New York Times, Washington Post and Wall Street Journal; and other outlets lost their Pentagon press credentials. <\/p>\n
Defense secretary appeared animated in the early March press briefing (AFP via Getty Images)But the Pentagon made exceptions for the March 2 press conference, requesting major broadcast TV cameras and allowing some reporters in the briefing room. <\/p>\n
During the press briefing, Hegseth appeared animated before reporters, fiercely pushing back against criticisms of the attacks and accusing mainstream media of reporting false narratives. <\/p>\n
\u201cTo the media outlets and political left screaming \u2018endless wars,\u2019 stop. This is not Iraq. This is not endless,\u201d Hegseth said during the presser. \u201cOur generation knows better and so does this president.\u201d<\/p>\n
The defense secretary assertively called out NBC for asking a \u201cgotcha-type question\u201d when pressed about the timeline of the ongoing war, he later criticized another reporter\u2019s question about whether the U.S. planned to put boots on the ground.<\/p>\n
Hegseth has frequently clashes with reporters during his time as defense secretary (Getty)<\/p>\n
Hegseth pushed back on reporters\u2019 questions in the Pentagon press briefing room during the March 2 press conference, accusing mainstream media of pushing anti-Trump narratives (Getty)\u201cWhy in the world would we tell you, you, the enemy, anybody, what we will or will not do in pursuit of an objective?\u201d Hegseth responded to a reporter\u2019s question. <\/p>\n
Later during that same press conference, the defense secretary bluntly responded to another reporter\u2019s inquiry about preventing this conflict from spiraling with: \u201cDid you not hear my remarks?\u201d<\/p>\n
Since being tapped as President Donald Trump\u2019s defense secretary, Hegseth has consistently sparred with reporters. <\/p>\n
When press photographers attempted to enter the press briefing room for the March 4 press conference, they were not allowed in, those familiar with the situation told the Washington Post. <\/p>\n
However, the Defense Department\u2019s staff photographers are permitted in the briefing rooms and do publish photos for public use.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Press photographers are no longer permitted to take photos inside the Pentagon press briefing room after several outlets published \u201cunflattering\u201d photos of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, two people familiar with the situation told the Washington Post. On March 2, Hegseth held a press conference with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to brief […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5497,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5496","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n