HUNT VALLEY, Md. (TNND) — The Department of Defense (DOD) informed members of the press on Friday that it may restrict their access to the Pentagon for publishing some information without approval.
Journalists must submit for review classified national security information and “controlled unclassified information,” which includes materials related to security, law enforcement investigations, privacy and “proprietary business interests,” as defined by a 2010 executive order. Any journalist that releases such information without approval can be labeled a security risk and denied access to the Pentagon or have their building pass revoked.
The guidelines in the memo provided to credentialed resident media at the Pentagon reaffirms the standards that are already in line with every other military base in the country,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement to The National News Desk on Monday. “These are basic, common-sense guidelines to protect sensitive information as well as the protection of national security and the safety of all who work at the Pentagon.”
The DOD noted in the memo that the unauthorized disclosure of classified national security information and controlled unclassified information poses a security risk which could put its staff in “jeopardy” and harm the country. The department cited executive orders from former President Barack Obama that it says give it its authority.
Obama wrote in one of the orders, given in December 2009, that the “national defense” has required some information to be “maintained in confidence” to protect American citizens, homeland security, democratic institutions and interactions with foreign nations.
“Protecting information critical to our Nation’s security and demonstrating our commitment to open Government through accurate and accountable application of classification standards and routine, secure, and effective declassification are equally important priorities,” Obama continued.
The National Press Club, an organization of journalists and communications workers, said in a statement on Friday the DOD’s restrictions are a “direct assault on independent journalism at the very place where independent scrutiny matters most: the U.S. military.”
“If the news about our military must first be approved by the government, then the public is no longer getting independent reporting. It is getting only what officials want them to see,” the organization noted. “That should alarm every American.”
“Independent reporting on the military is essential to democracy. It is what allows citizens to hold leaders accountable and ensures that decisions of war and peace are made in the light of day,” the club added. “This pledge undermines that principle, and the National Press Club calls on the Pentagon to rescind it immediately.”
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