The Pentagon is refuting new reporting that unsavory images of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at Iran-related briefings was the cause for a media photographer crackdown.
The Department of Defense has barred press photographers from briefings directly correlated with the actions of the United States in Iran, on the basis of published photos of Hegseth that his staff reportedly deemed “unflattering,” according to the Washington Post, citing two individuals familiar with the decision who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation.
Hegseth is still currently allowing videography at such briefings.
"In order to use space in the Pentagon Briefing Room effectively, we are allowing one representative per news outlet if uncredentialed, excluding pool,” Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson told Military.com on Wednesday. “Photographs 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."
The Associated Press reported that photographers have not been permitted to attend the last two Iran-related briefings, bucking long-standing policy that has traditionally allowed journalists and photojournalists into the room and provided access.
Several outlets including the AP, Reuters and Getty Images sent photographers to the briefing from Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, according to the Post.
But the photos, which are licensed and used internationally by a plethora of media, were reportedly scrutinized by Hegseth's staff due to how the secretary looked in said images.
Photographers were not allowed into the following two briefings at the Pentagon, on March 4 and March 10.
Contentious Relationship Between Press and Pentagon
There has been a contentious relationship between the press and the Hegseth-led Pentagon.
It hit a wall in October 2025 when major legacy publications including the Washington Post, New York Times, CNN and the AP turned in press access badges after allegedly being told at the time by the Pentagon that certain news would be restricted unless originally cleared by the Pentagon itself.
An initial hearing in a court case stemming from a New York Times lawsuit against the Pentagon occurred just last week, with Times attorney Theodore Boutrous telling U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman that the American public is being deprived of vital war-based information due to the Pentagon’s guardrails, per the AP.
“As The Times has long said, there is a clear importance and public service to allowing journalists to report fully on the U.S. military,” said Charles Stadtlander, spokesman for the newspaper, according to the AP. “This includes photojournalists, who deserve access and credentialing to attend Pentagon briefings.”
The dissent from the media to the stricter guidelines opened the door for a major revamping of the Pentagon briefing room, allowing multiple conservative-minded outlets access including Gateway Pundit, the National Pulse, Human Events, podcaster Tim Pool, the Just the News website founded by journalist John Solomon, Frontlines by Turning Point USA, and LindellTV, run by “MyPillow” CEO Mike Lindell.
Fox News and Newsmax were notable walkouts, disagreeing to the Pentagon’s new rules.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said at the time that the admitted outlets were part of the “next generation” of the Pentagon press corps, acknowledging that more than 60 journalists had agreed to the new policy—including 26 journalists who had previously been part of the press corps and signed onto the new policy. among the signees.
Parnell, in an X post last October, blamed the “self-righteous media who chose to self-deport from the Pentagon."
“Americans have largely abandoned digesting their news through the lens of activists who masquerade as journalists in the mainstream media,” Parnell wrote. “We look forward to beginning a fresh relationship with members of the new Pentagon press corps.”
In January, Military.com reported how the longtime military publication Stars and Stripes was battling the Defense Department after it requested the World War II-era publication shift its editorial emphasis toward warfighters.
“The potential impact of the changes would be devastating for Stars and Stripes' editorial independence and for its credibility,” the publication's ombudsman, Jacqueline Smith, told Military.com in January. “Readers, who are primarily the military community, must be able to trust that what they are reading is fair, objective and balanced.”
