‘Orwellian’: New York Times asks judge to snipe Pentagon escort rule

WASHINGTON (CN) — The New York Times urged a federal judge on Friday to order the Pentagon to cease its requirement that journalists be escorted within the building, arguing the policy was clear First Amendment retaliation.

Senior U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman heard arguments in the news outlet’s second lawsuit against the Department of Defense’s Pete Hegseth after previously finding both the initial policy and an interim version unconstitutional.

Friedman, a Bill Clinton appointee, blocked the original policy on March 20 and largely dismantled the interim version in an April 9 order.

The Pentagon reinstated the escort requirement after a divided D.C. Circuit panel ruled on April 27 that the provision was not properly before the court, preventing Friedman from enforcing his original injunction to lift the requirement.

The 2-1 ruling was led by U.S. Circuit Judges Justin Walker, a Trump appointee, and Bradley Garcia, a Biden appointee, who granted the government an emergency stay while the appeal proceeds. U.S. Circuit Judge Michelle Childs, also a Biden appointee, dissented.

The Times filed its second lawsuit on May 18.

Theodore Boutrous of Gibson Dunn, representing the New York Times, argued that forcing journalists with Pentagon press credentials to walk through its hallways with a handler was “more of the same” and “tragic,” particularly given the impact on free newsgathering as the United States remains engaged in conflict with Iran.

While the number of scoops the Times has landed since the October press policy has increased, Boutrous argued those figures show the policies had no effect on journalists’ ability to obtain restricted information.

According to a Times’ reply brief, between Oct. 31 and March 31, 109 of the 308 stories about the Pentagon were scoops with 158 relying on non-public information, compared to 60 of 170 scoops before Oct. 31 with 76 relying on non-public information.

Boutrous argued that the Times’ increased success in breaking Pentagon news stemmed from reporters’ deep relationships within the military and the Pentagon. The escort requirement, he said, makes it far harder for newer reporters to develop those sources.

He also argued that the Pentagon effectively rendered press credentials “effectively worthless” by designating its main press office a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility, or SCIF.

According to the Pentagon, the designation was necessary because speechwriters routinely handle classified information. As a result, access to the offices of the Assistant to the Secretary of War for Public Affairs and the press secretary is limited to scheduled appointments.

Boutrous noted how Friedman slammed the previous versions of the press restrictions and said the press office’s closure worsened the situation, “it was Kafka-esque, now it’s Orwellian.”

Justice Department attorney Sarah Welch urged Friedman to leave the escort requirement in place, asserting it has caused no meaningful harm because credentialed reporters can still enter the Pentagon, conduct interviews and gather news without delay.

Welch also noted the policy applies equally to traditional news organizations and “new media” figures such as Laura Loomer, arguing it therefore cannot constitute viewpoint discrimination.

She urged Friedman to defer to the D.C. Circuit’s conclusion that the escort requirement “furthers important national security interests” rather than second-guess that determination.

In his rebuttal, Boutrous asserted that the government’s national security claims were pretextual because the Pentagon only raised such claims after appealing to the DC Circuit, which “reeks of pretext.”

The government seemingly sat on those concerns for months and vigorously defended the initial version of the policy that allowed for unescorted access within the building, Boutrous pointed out, and thus cannot be taken seriously at this point in the case.

The case began with the Pentagon’s October 2025 press policy, under which journalists could be deemed a “security risk” for disclosing classified or even unclassified information without the Pentagon’s authorization. Dozens of media outlets rejected the rules.

After Friedman granted summary judgment to the Times, the news organization returned to court three days later, informing Friedman the Pentagon had instituted an interim policy that effectively maintained many of the provisions barring journalists from reporting freely and adding the escort requirement.

Friedman then granted a motion to compel on April 9, slamming Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for reinstating the unlawful policy “under the guise” of taking new agency action and expecting “the court to turn a blind eye.”

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