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U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth at last week's annual Pentagon POW/MIA Recognition Day.

A memo sent last week to military reporters by the “Assistant to the Secretary of War” says that all information from what’s still legally known as the Department of Defense “must be approved for public release by an appropriate authorizing official before it is released, even if it is unclassified.”

A violation of this new policy, the memo warns, could result in the yanking of a journalist’s Pentagon credential, which grants access to official buildings and briefings for those who cover the military full time or as a significant element of their reporting.

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This week, the Times Union editorial board is spotlighting recent efforts to chill, silence or even criminalize speech and actions protected by the First Amendment.

Reaching far beyond standard military concerns over maintaining operational security and........

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