00:00You may have heard about the Pentagon's new press policy and the majority of news outlets from both sides of the political spectrum speaking out against it.
00:09So what is it that has the press pushing back and the Pentagon refusing to back down?
00:15This standoff highlights the fine line between protecting national security and protecting press freedom.
00:22How far the government can go to try and shield sensitive information without stepping on First Amendment rights.
00:30We'll flash back to 1971 and the Daniel Ellsberg case, a landmark moment that helped define the press's right to publish and still shapes the debate over government transparency today.
00:47So here's what the Pentagon's new policy looks like.
00:50In a memorandum, the Pentagon announced security requirements and new physical control measures.
00:56That means reporters will now need an official escort to enter areas they once moved through freely.
01:03Journalists will also have to wear an extra visible press identifier badge at all times.
01:09And here comes the sticking point.
01:11The original September memo required reporters to get Department of War information approved for public release.
01:19After pushback, that language was removed.
01:23The New York Times reported the revised draft says members of the news media are not required to submit their writings before publication,
01:31but warned that any reporter who encourages government officials to violate disclosure laws could still be deemed a security risk.
01:41In plainer words, the Pentagon already prohibits its employees from leaking sensitive information.
01:48The new policy goes further, restricting journalists from even seeking out that sort of info.
01:55If they sign on to the credentialing, they're not going to try to get soldiers to break the law by giving classified information.
02:00So it's common sense stuff, Mr. President.
02:02We're trying to make sure national security is respected and we're proud of the policy.
02:06It's this fine line between protecting national security and infringing on press freedom that's created the uproar that you're seeing today.
02:15We spoke with Susan Seeger, a professor at the University of California, Irvine School of Law, someone who specializes in First Amendment cases.
02:24I haven't heard of anything where the press is so united against a government policy.
02:30I don't know of anything like this.
02:32However, Seeger points out this isn't the first time.
02:35The government has tried to prevent sensitive leaks to the press.
02:39Some of the most important news stories in American history are leaks by people who are unauthorized to speak and unauthorized to give information to the press.
02:51And yet they did. And I'm thinking of the Daniel Ellsberg case.
02:55In 1971, Daniel Ellsberg leaked what's known as the Pentagon Papers, a top-secret Defense Department study exposing how the government was misleading the American people about the Vietnam War.
03:09And he decided to leak it to the Washington Post and the New York Times.
03:12And as a result of these leaks, which were unauthorized by the government, the American people learned that the Vietnam War was a complete disaster.
03:22And the presidents knew that we were never going to win that war.
03:25And it helped the American people turn against the war and have us eventually pull out a Vietnam War.
03:31The Nixon administration tried to prevent its publication, and it went all the way to the Supreme Court, which ruled in favor of the press, saying the government couldn't use national security as a blanket reason to stop publication.
03:47The government can go to court and can stop the presses if there's actually proof of an actual imminent danger to human life.
03:54But Seeger says the courts have never ruled against the press in these circumstances.
04:01So it's extremely high bar. The court has never held, the Supreme Court has never affirmed any kind of, it's called a prior restraint, never allowed the government to stop publication.
04:13You could view a government leak as a double-edged sword.
04:17On one side, it can be critically important, shedding light on the government and holding officials accountable.
04:23On the other, it could threaten national security, depending on what it is.
04:29And while the government has guidance in place for its own employees to keep that valve shut and tight,
04:35can the government also place guidance on reporters to try and prevent leaks?
04:41That's the question that's being debated between the media at large and the Pentagon over this new policy.
04:47I don't think it will inhibit their ability to report.
04:50They can get on the phone, they have sources, they can reach through all sorts of means, not just by being in the Pentagon.
04:56This just means they can't come to the Pentagon.
04:59Their offices are not there in the Pentagon itself.
05:02Right now, it's a standoff, and Pentagon press offices are largely empty.
05:07Thank you for watching our story, and thank you to Professor Seeger for her insight.
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