Hegseth backs Trump on banning media outlets

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth publicly voiced support for President Trump’s decision to bar several news organizations from White House access, The Hill reported in its Defense & National Security newsletter. In remarks published Friday, Hegseth said he "fully supports" the administration's action and accused the named outlets of having "endangered" — the published excerpt does not include the rest of that assertion.

The media organizations identified in the report are CNN, MS Now (as listed in the newsletter) and Politico. The Hill's brief account focuses on Hegseth’s explicit backing of the president’s move and quotes his short statement of support.

The item appears in The Hill’s Defense & NatSec newsletter, which covers developments at the intersection of national security and public affairs. The published line attributed to Hegseth was concise and the newsletter excerpt does not provide additional detail about the basis for the ban or any responses from the named outlets.

Beyond the quoted endorsement, the newsletter did not include further elaboration from Hegseth or other administration officials in the excerpt provided. The report therefore documents the defense secretary’s public alignment with the White House decision as presented in The Hill's coverage.