SPJ condemns Pentagon moves to undermine independent military journalism and restrict press access

The Society of Professional Journalists is alarmed by two escalating actions by the U.S. Department of Defense that threaten press freedom and public accountability: reported plans to seize editorial control of Stars and Stripes and the Pentagon’s new credentialing policy that has effectively emptied the Pentagon press corps for the first time in more than 80 years. 

According to a statement attributed to the Pentagon’s top public affairs official, the Department would “take over editorial content decision-making” at Stars and Stripes and “refocus its content” away from so-called “woke distractions.” That posture directly contradicts long-standing protections for Stars and Stripes’ editorial independence and its governing directive, which affirms that “there shall be a free flow of news and information to its readership without news management or censorship.”  

The service members who risk their lives to defend the Constitution have earned the same First Amendment freedoms it guarantees — including the right to independent journalism that informs them, reflects their lived reality and holds power to account. 

SPJ is equally concerned about the Pentagon’s new credentialing policy, which penalizes routine newsgathering and grants the government sweeping discretion to deny, revoke or refuse to renew press access based on whether a reporter seeks information beyond what officials have approved for release. The SPJ Code of Ethics calls on journalists to “seek truth and report it.” That means asking questions, verifying information and going beyond official statements. 

That is why SPJ joined an amicus brief led by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press in The New York Times Co., et al. v. Department of Defense, supporting plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment challenging the policy. The brief underscores a foundational principle: “a free press cannot be made to rely solely upon the sufferance of government to supply it with information.”  

When credentialing becomes a tool to control coverage — or to punish journalists for pursuing news — it becomes incompatible not only with ethical journalism but also with the First Amendment and the democratic watchdog role the press is meant to serve. 

The SPJ Code of Ethics also instructs journalists to minimize harm and weigh the consequences of publication, including national security concerns. Journalists already do that work every day.  They cannot do their jobs if asking questions or seeking information outside press releases or official briefings is treated as a security threat and authorities seek to replace ethical journalism with vague rules that encourage self-censorship. Taken together, these developments point to the same dangerous destination: a military information environment shaped by official messaging rather than independent reporting. 

Turning Stars and Stripes into a vehicle for government-generated content, while simultaneously restricting reporters from building sources and verifying facts, represents an unmistakable drift away from transparency and toward propaganda. 

An informed public depends on independent reporting about the military — especially on matters involving war, national security, taxpayer spending and the safety of the military. 

SPJ calls on the Department of Defense to reaffirm, in word and deed, the editorial independence of Stars and Stripes and to immediately stop using the Pentagon credentialing policy to intimidate journalists, restrict lawful newsgathering or impose viewpoint-based punishments. The American public — including the men and women who serve — deserves a Pentagon that respects the Constitution it is sworn to defend. 

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