五角大楼因涉嫌隐瞒美军在伊朗战争中的伤亡数据而面临严厉指控。[1]前国防部长莱昂·帕内塔表示，存在"刻意努力向美国人民隐瞒信息"的行为，称这"在许多方面代表了一种可耻的做法"。[1]前国务院发言人内德·普赖斯指出，五角大楼的做法"超越了行政部门对媒体的寻常不信任，而是关乎向美国人民隐瞒这场战争的真实和全面成本"。[1]
根据五角大楼的官方数据，美军在伊朗战争中共有18人阵亡、约430人受伤。[1]五角大楼声称自7月7日以来有100名士兵受伤，其中96%已返回值勤。[1]该战争迄今已耗资美国375亿美元。[1]为控制信息流通，五角大楼已有两个半月未举行新闻发布会，并限制记者进出，引发新闻自由争议。[1]
自特朗普2025年1月返回权力以来，五角大楼已驱逐《纽约时报》、美国国家公共电台等主流媒体，代之以布赖特巴特等亲特朗普媒体。[1]此外，国务卿彼得·赫格塞思曾在参议院拨款委员会听证会上因被称为"失败"而愤怒爆发。[1]
The Pentagon has drawn sharp criticism for allegedly withholding information about American military casualties in the Iran war. Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and former State Department spokesperson Ned Price have accused the Defense Department of deliberately obscuring casualty data to avoid political backlash ahead of November midterm elections.[1]
According to the Pentagon, 18 service members have been killed and approximately 430 wounded in the Iran conflict, which has cost the United States $37.5 billion.[1] The Defense Department reported that since July 7, one hundred soldiers have been injured, with 96 percent returning to duty.[1] However, the agency has not held a press briefing for two and a half months and has restricted media access, sparking concerns about press freedom.[1]
Panetta stated that there is "deliberate effort to hide information from the American people," which he characterized as "shameful in many respects."[1] Price argued that the situation "goes beyond the typical executive branch mistrust of the media" and concerns concealing "the true and full cost of this war" from Americans.[1] Secretary of State Peter Hegseth erupted in anger during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing after being called a "failure."[1]
Since Trump returned to power in January 2025, the Pentagon has expelled mainstream media outlets including The New York Times and National Public Radio in favor of pro-Trump platforms such as Breitbart.[1]