Pentagon restricts journalist access to press office

The Pentagon’s press office has been reclassified as a restricted-access facility due to the use of classified materials and the secure SIPRNet network, Joel Valdez, a Pentagon spokesperson, has stated.

Sharing a post on X, he said this was the most transparent Department of War in history, and no tricks by fake news media will change that, Caliber.Az reports.

This is the most transparent War Department in history. No amount of spin from the Fake News media will change that.

The Pentagon Press Office has been redesignated as a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility due to speechwriters from the Office of the Secretary of War… https://t.co/tlWb1XIeOk

— Acting Press Sec Joel Valdez (@JoelValdezDOW) June 1, 2026

According to him, the Pentagon press office has been moved to SCIF (Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility) status because the space is now shared with speechwriters from the Office of the Secretary of War.

“These speechwriters routinely handle classified material and require SIPRNet access. As a result, journalists will no longer be permitted to enter the office space. There’s nothing controversial about that,” he wrote.

He noted that access to the office of the Assistant Secretary of War for Public Affairs, Sean Parnell, and to the press secretary remains possible, but only by “appointment only.”

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov