Judge says Pentagon is still violating order restoring reporters’ access

Story · April 11, 2026

Judge says Pentagon is still violating order restoring reporters’ access

By The Daily Fuckup Newsroom · From the April 11, 2026 edition

Press Access Defiance Confidence 5/5

Correction: A federal judge found the Pentagon had not yet complied with his March 20 order restoring reporters’ access and directed the department to file a sworn declaration by April 16.

A federal judge on April 9 said the Pentagon had not yet brought its revised press policy into compliance with his March 20 order restoring reporters’ access.

U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman treated the dispute as an enforcement matter, not a fresh ruling on every Pentagon access rule. He said the Defense Department’s new version of the policy still ran afoul of the earlier order and could not be used to sidestep the court’s instructions.

Friedman ordered the Pentagon to submit a sworn declaration by April 16 explaining how it will comply. The filing deadline keeps the pressure on the department to show that its updated rules actually fix the defects the court already identified.

The case now turns on execution: whether the Pentagon revises the policy in a way the court accepts, or keeps trying to preserve the same restrictions under a different label.

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Further reporting

Read other reputable coverage

AP: Judge sides with New York Times in challenge to policy limiting reporters’ access to Pentagon · Associated Press
AP: Federal judge finds Pentagon is violating court order to restore access to reporters · Associated Press
Washington Post: Pentagon violated court order on press access, judge rules · The Washington Post

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