Overview
- The Pentagon confirmed on Tuesday that it has redesignated the building’s press office as a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF), which blocks entry to journalists because only cleared personnel may enter.
- The department says speechwriters and other staff who routinely handle classified material and require access to the military’s SIPRNet occupy the space, which it calls an administrative security measure.
- News organizations and press-rights groups say the redesignation will shrink independent coverage of military affairs, and The New York Times has an active lawsuit arguing the Pentagon’s escort and publication rules violate the First Amendment.
- Federal judges have already struck down earlier restrictions and criticized a provisional escort policy, but parts of those rulings remain stayed by an appeals court while the government presses its appeal.
- The move follows months of escalating tensions — including a widespread return of Pentagon credentials by major outlets last October and the eviction of some newsrooms — and could reshape reporters’ daily access to officials and classified briefings.