Pentagon Faces Backlash for Strict Reporter Access Rules

0:00It's March 30th. This is Entertainment and Celebrity News, today pop culture powered by AI. The Pentagon is catching heat for dodging a court order that blocks their new rules limiting reporters access to headquarters. Back on March 20th, federal judge Paul Friedman ruled the policy violates free speech and due process rights. He ordered them to restore credentials for seven New York Times journalists and set it applies to everyone. Here this week, a Times lawyer told the judge, the Pentagon rolled out a sneaky revised policy that's even tougher, forcing escorts for credentialed. Reporters and adding strict source anonymity rules. Government lawyers fired back, claiming it's full compliance with save zones for basic reporting. Reporters are fuming over the road blocks, like being stuck in a library, they can't even reach without forbidden routes or shuttles. The judge called it straight up weird, sounding like a catch-22 setup. This stems from last October, when mainstream outlets walked out rather than sign on, leading

1:01to a December lawsuit. Pentagon reps insist they're playing fair and plan to appeal the original ruling. Now the press court inside is mostly conservative shops that agree to the terms, while holdouts like the Associated Press keep covering the military from outside. Tensions are high as the judge weighs his next move, with journalists pushing for real access to do their jobs without these constant hurdles.