Longtime CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr blasted Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth for curtailing press access in the Pentagon because his actions have embarrassed him many times over and show that he is more concerned with the media than his actual job.
Fox News’ Howard Kurtz asked Starr about her recent letter to Hegseth.
KURTZ: You posted this about Pete Hegseth on your Substack, saying you feel tremendous sadness at the changes he’s made. Explain.
STARR: I do. It’s completely unnecessary. Reporters for decades have operated inside the Pentagon, moving through the hallways, and of course, they talk to sources.
Hegseth is worried that it is unauthorized information. That’s conversation.
That’s reporting.
KURTZ: But the suggestion here is that your reporters, of which you were one for decades, are looking to vacuum up secret or classified documents by walking in those halls.
STARR: Impossible to do. Reporters have no access to classified areas. Those are locked. I’m not aware of any instance in which a reporter has accessed classified information in the Pentagon by moving through the hallways and going into classified areas.
