By Andrea Shalal
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A new White House rule issued Friday restricts the ability of credentialed journalists to freely access the offices of press secretary Karoline Leavitt and other top communications officials in the West Wing, near the Oval Office.
The new memorandum from the National Security Council bans journalists from accessing Room 140, also known as “Upper Press,” without a prior appointment, citing the need to protect potentially sensitive material. It said the change would take effect immediately.
The White House move follows restrictions put in place earlier this month for reporters at the Department of Defense, a move that prompted dozens of journalists to vacate their offices in the Pentagon and return their credentials.
The National Security Council said the change was made because structural changes to the NSC mean White House communications officials are now “routinely engaging with sensitive material.”
“In order to protect such material, and maintain coordination between National Security Council Staff and White House Communications Staff, members of the press are no longer permitted to access Room 140 without prior approval in the form of an appointment with an authorized White House Staff Member,” the memo said.
Previously, credentialed White House journalists could access Room 140, which is a short hallway from the Oval Office, on short notice to speak with Leavitt, her deputy Steven Cheung and other senior officials.
The White House Correspondents Association, which represents journalists covering the White House, could not be reached for immediate comment.
The Trump administration months ago removed Reuters, the Associated Press and Bloomberg News from the permanent “pool” of reporters covering the president, although it allows those outlets to participate on a sporadic basis.
Friday’s announcement comes weeks after the crackdown on press access by the Defense Department, which now requires news outlets to sign a new policy or lose access to press credentials and Pentagon workspaces.
At least 30 news organizations, including Reuters, declined to agree to the Pentagon restrictions, citing a threat to press freedoms and their ability to conduct independent newsgathering.
The Pentagon policy requires journalists to acknowledge new rules on press access, including that they could be branded security risks and have their Pentagon press badges revoked if they ask department employees to disclose classified and some types of unclassified information.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; editing by Diane Craft and David Gregorio)
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