this post was submitted on 12 Mar 2026
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Press photographers were reportedly barred from Pentagon press briefings after Pete Hegseth‘s staff became irked over unflattering photos of the defense secretary. The office of the notoriously vain Cabinet member — a former Fox News host who had a hair and makeup studio built in the Pentagon shortly after being confirmed — should probably have more important things on his mind, chiefly the war in Iran, and, perhaps, the elementary school there that the United States appears to have bombed.

According to a Wednesday report from The Washington Post, press pool photographers were banned from briefings on March 4 and March 10 after taking and publishing what sources described as “unflattering” images of Hegseth. The Post noted that the White House had declined to comment on the decision to exclude the photographers. The White House took exception, with Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly sharing an email reply to the publication with an off-topic quip over the newspaper’s recent layoff of more than 300 journalists, but no actual response to the Post’s question about the concern over Hegseth’s image.

The National Press Club responded on Wednesday, with President Mark Schoeff Jr. writing that the Pentagon’s decision “is deeply troubling and runs counter to the fundamental principles of transparency in a democratic society,” adding that “when the government decides which images the public is allowed to see, transparency is replaced by control.” PEN America also responded, calling the decision to bar photographers a “petty act of retaliation.”

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[–] dan69@lemmy.world 1 points 28 minutes ago* (last edited 28 minutes ago)

This photos aren’t relevant, only photos I care about the EPSTEIN photos!

[–] Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works 4 points 2 hours ago (1 children)
[–] GratefullyGodless@lemmy.world 1 points 20 minutes ago

And hair gel.

[–] foggy@lemmy.world 9 points 3 hours ago

This is how you get the worst pictures of yourself published ad nauseam.

[–] ef9357@lemmy.world 1 points 2 hours ago

He looks like a constipated troll. The camera ain’t lying.

[–] k0e3@lemmy.ca 4 points 3 hours ago

I wanna see ugly photos and photoshops of him trending like we did with JD Vance.

[–] dephyre@lemmy.world 64 points 7 hours ago (1 children)
[–] webp@mander.xyz 5 points 4 hours ago

His face unflatters itself.

[–] jaemo@sh.itjust.works 4 points 3 hours ago

Is it worth chiming in that I've personally never seen any image or facsimile of that thing that is in any way, shape, or form flattering to the subject matter? If I was making a catalogue of "shammies one would wash one's car with" its complexion might make an appearance in the appendix but otherwise nah. No redeeming value from a photographic stance, or, frankly, from any other point of view really.

He's not much good to humanity alive.

[–] Greyghoster@aussie.zone 1 points 2 hours ago

Trump picked him because he was pretty and a suck up. That probably means he is vain as well.

[–] Ghostie@lemmy.zip 19 points 5 hours ago

Every person on the internet that dislikes this guy should go back through past video footage and find frames that are completely unflattering and screenshot them, inundating the internet with more unflattering images.

[–] KnitWit@lemmy.world 17 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

The weird thing is they weren’t even bad pictures of him. Like, he looks like a douchebag who would use terms like ‘warfighter’ instead of just saying soldier, but the photos were just him. It’s not like the Vanity Fair photos that purposefully focused on the lip injection wounds, etc.

[–] thebestaquaman@lemmy.world 11 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

It's not about the pictures. I honestly think this is just an excuse to get rid of journalists, and a method for hammering home the point that "journalists bad. news fake." I'm not even sure he's actually seen the pictures I question.

With that said, I wouldn't put it past him to actually be so vain that it is really about the pictures. However I think it's more likely that he would have done something like this anyway, and just picked an excuse.

[–] KnitWit@lemmy.world 3 points 3 hours ago* (last edited 3 hours ago)

I think it’s a form of loyalty test for them for sure, but also I really do think it comes it down to him being that vain. One of the first things he did after confirmation was have a makeup studio installed. Guarantee an hour or more of his day is spent in front of a mirror, every day.

Armchair psychologist: Things aren’t going as planned in Iran, and he feels like he looks like a fool for it, so he’s lashing out and attacking the media for making him look bad.

[–] FUCKING_CUNO@lemmy.dbzer0.com 64 points 7 hours ago

Quit lookin so dumb than

Oh this is definitely getting Streisand Effected.

[–] JoMiran@lemmy.ml 35 points 7 hours ago

OK, but why male models?

[–] quick_snail@feddit.nl 1 points 2 hours ago

South Park nailed it

[–] MushuChupacabra@piefed.world 47 points 7 hours ago

What a loser.

[–] blimthepixie@lemmy.dbzer0.com 37 points 7 hours ago

Surely this is a fast track way of getting people to only take unflattering photos of you

[–] tempest@lemmy.ca 8 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

I wouldn't want photos of me when I'm on a 3 day bender either

[–] FuglyDuck@lemmy.world 3 points 2 hours ago

3 day benders would be rookie numbers. He’s not gone off a bender since he got the job.

[–] robocall@lemmy.world 19 points 7 hours ago
[–] Jaybird@lemmy.world 12 points 6 hours ago

What a snowflake.

Don't be a drag just be a queen.

[–] circuitfarmer@lemmy.sdf.org 9 points 6 hours ago

His skin would clear up if he stopped drinking.

[–] cyberpunk007@lemmy.ca 5 points 5 hours ago

Everyone in the trump administration has huge ego problems.

[–] IAmYouButYouDontKnowYet@reddthat.com 11 points 7 hours ago (2 children)

Dude looks like a twink fratboys bleached asshole.

[–] homes@piefed.world 22 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

He’s nowhere near that pretty

[–] Kolanaki@pawb.social 11 points 7 hours ago

Then why don't I want to stick my dick in him? 🤔

[–] frustrated_phagocytosis@fedia.io 10 points 7 hours ago

They should go back and pick even worse shots to update the stories with, make them bigger and add ugly photos where none were before