Pete Hegseth briefed media on the burning Iran situation. His 'bad photos' made news

Pete Hegseth's team banned photographers from attending Pentagon briefings after they took some "unflattering" pictures of the Defense Secretary, according to American media reports. The Washington Post quoted sources as saying that his staff was not happy with the pictures they took of him during the hearing on March 2. It was the first briefing by Hegseth in eight months. But the photographers from news agencies like Reuters, Getty Images and the Associated Press were not allowed to attend the March 4 and March 10 briefings. It is not known which pictures they apparently objected to. Meanwhile, the Pentagon has dismissed all claims that they were not permitted in the briefings because of some pictures. Hegseth's staff says they were denied entry due to limited space. "In order to use space in the Pentagon Briefing Room effectively, we are allowing one representative per news outlet if uncredentialed, excluding pool," spokeswoman Kingsley Wilson said.

He added that if it doesn't work out for some media houses, they should apply for "a Pentagon press credential." Notably, the Pentagon required all media houses to sign a new contract last year, but most of them refused due to the strict terms. However, since the Iran war broke out, arrangements have been made to allow some journalists to attend the briefings. The March 2 briefing by Hegseth and General Dan Caine was initially intended as a "Pentagon new media" affair, but to secure TV airtime, media outlets were allowed inside. But the photos the journalists took left the staff angry, which led them to block them out.

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White House calls blockade due to bad photos fake news

WaPo also said that White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly refused to comment when asked if the photographer blackout was because of the pictures of Hegseth. But Kelly termed it "fake news", adding that "He just didn't like my comment because it exposes how little the Washington Post cares about access for photographers…"

In October last year, under a new government policy, the press was largely banned from reporting some sensitive information and was told to show Pentagon officials a story before publishing. This angered the journalists who staged a walkout. The New York Times and journalist Julian Barnes sued the government, claiming a violation of First Amendment.