Judges rule Pentagon can require reporter escorts during policy appeal

The Defense Department can demand reporters be escorted on Pentagon grounds while the Trump administration appeals a judge’s decision from earlier this month that compels the agency to restore access for journalists, an appeals court ruled Monday.

The majority opinion on the ruling, made by a split, three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, said the administration is “likely to succeed” in showing that its escort requirement is legally valid.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell submitted a declaration to the court explaining that prior to the new press policy, enacted in October, journalists obtained sensitive or classified information often monthly, and sometimes multiple times per month, including information concerning operational plans and intelligence assessments.

“Unescorted access to the Pentagon was, according to the Department, ‘a significant contributing factor’ to that pattern because it enabled reporters to ‘observe activity patterns’ and identify potential sources of sensitive information,” according to the majority ruling. “On that basis, the Department argues that unescorted access to the Pentagon will increase the risk that journalists obtain and disseminate sensitive information, jeopardizing........

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