The White House announced on Friday (October 31) that media reporters will no longer be allowed free access to certain areas of the West Wing where the offices of the White House press secretary and other senior communications officials are located.
The National Security Council released a memorandum on Friday prohibiting reporters from entering Room 140, also known as the “Upper Press,” without an appointment, citing the need to protect potentially sensitive information. The memorandum stated that the new rules would take immediate effect.
The National Security Council explained that this change was made following structural adjustments to allow White House communications officials to “frequently access sensitive information.”
The offices of White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt and White House communications director Steven Cheung are both located in this now restricted area.
Room 140 is just a short walk away from the President’s Oval Office. Previously, reporters with White House press credentials could go to this office area immediately upon notification and speak directly with Leavitt, Cheung, and other senior officials.
The White House Correspondents Association did not immediately comment on this new rule.
The White House stated that the introduction of this new rule is based on national security considerations. The Pentagon recently implemented a similar rule where journalists are not allowed to enter most office areas without government officials present. This new rule is quite different from the previous stringent pass policy.
Former Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth subsequently requested journalists to agree to a new policy: they must commit not to obtain or use any unauthorized information, even if the information is not classified, and return their press credentials within 24 hours. Dozens of news organizations refused to accept this policy.
Friday’s announcement of the new rule is the latest move by the White House to restrict journalists. Earlier this year, the White House announced that it would now decide the composition of the White House press corps, rather than leaving it to the White House Correspondents Association, and stated that Reuters, the Associated Press, and Bloomberg would no longer be permanent members of the press corps, allowing these media outlets to occasionally report on the President’s activities.
Steven Cheung posted on social media that White House reporters had secretly recorded audio and video in the West Wing offices, accessed restricted rooms in the West Wing, and eavesdropped on confidential meetings.