Ruling in favor of The New York Times, court finds Defense Department policies under Secretary Pete Hegseth unlawfully targeted journalists and restricted constitutional press freedoms amid wartime reporting.
U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman determined that the Defense Department’s credentialing policy—championed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth—violated both the First Amendment’s protections for free speech and the Fifth Amendment’s guarantee of due process. The decision came in response to a lawsuit filed by The New York Times and one of its Pentagon correspondents.
Court Rejects National Security Justification
In his opinion, Friedman acknowledged the importance of safeguarding classified information and military operations. However, he concluded that the Pentagon’s approach went too far—granting officials broad discretion to revoke credentials from journalists seeking information, even if unclassified.
“The policy’s true purpose and practical effect,” Friedman wrote, was to “weed out disfavored journalists,” underscoring concerns about viewpoint discrimination and government overreach.
The judge further emphasized that access to diverse reporting is especially critical during wartime, when public understanding of military actions carries heightened democratic importance.
