News no speak

[MajGenl.Meade]

The creation of Newspeak, a simplified language with a limited vocabulary, is designed to make "thoughtcrime" impossible by removing the words needed to even conceive of dissenting ideas.

Several leading news organizations with access to Pentagon briefings have formally said they will not agree to a new defense department policy that requires them to pledge they will not obtain unauthorized material and restricts access to certain areas unless accompanied by an official.

The policy, presented last month by the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has been widely criticized by media organizations asked to sign the pledge by Tuesday at 5pm or have 24 hours to turn in their press credentials.

The move follows a shake-up in February in which long-credentialed media outlets were required to vacate assigned workspaces which was cast as an “annual media rotation program”. A similar plan was presented at the White House where some briefing room spots were given to podcasters and other representatives of non-traditional media.

On Monday, the Washington Post joined the New York Times, CNN, the Atlantic, the Guardian, Reuters, the Associated Press, NPR, HuffPost and trade publication Breaking Defense in saying it would not sign on to the agreement. Matt Murray, the Post’s executive editor, said the policy runs counter to constitutional guarantees of freedom of the press.

“The proposed restrictions undercut First Amendment protections by placing unnecessary constraints on gathering and publishing information,” Murray wrote in a statement published on X. “We will continue to vigorously and fairly report on the policies and positions of the Pentagon and officials across the government.”

The Atlantic, which became embroiled in a dispute with Pentagon and White House officials earlier this year after editor Jeffrey Goldberg was accidentally added to a group chat on Signal, said it “fundamentally” opposes the new restrictions.

The new policy “constrains how journalists can report on the U.S. military, which is funded by nearly $1 trillion in taxpayer dollars annually,” a New York Times statement said. “The public has a right to know how the government and military are operating,” wrote the Times Washington bureau chief, Richard Stevenson.

[Big RR]

And the downhill slide totalitarianism continues... What do you expect when you make a Fox commentator secretary of defense, sorry, war. Trump searches far and wide to find advisors who are bigger buffoons than he is--and HEgseth is but one.

Hats off to the organizations which refused to sign. Wonder why the traditional broadcast networks are not among them. But i guess I am not surprised.

[Scooter]

I saw something that all of the broadcast networks (including Fox!!) put out a joint statement that they refused to sign. Apparently the only outlet that has agreed to sign so far is OAN.

[Big RR]

Thanks Scooter; it makes me feel a little better, but not much. A lot of them will cave is the pressure is upped; the major US broadcast networks don't value reporting the news, only appearing to do so; truth matter far less than looking like you have access. I don't know how we got to this point, but here we are.

[Sue U]

I don't know how we got to this point, but here we are.

A complete erosion of ethics and principle in both business and government. Not that either was ever truly ethical or principled, but at various historical points it seemed a general societal expectation. Now there is no longer even any pretense.

[Big RR]

at various historical points it seemed a general societal expectation

for government, I'd say since Nixon (or at least after Carter, since Nixon was forced to resign partly by public opinion), that expectation hasn't existed. And in foreign policy that expectation was thrown out after the Marshall Plan; few people really cared what dictators we cozied up to so long as it: 1. held those "godless communists" at bay or 2. kept the business interest money rolling, in or both. There were other times in our history where many people were more than happy to look the other way, but now that attitude seems to be celebrated and few voices are raised in opposition.