Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth launched a blistering attack on the press Friday during a Pentagon briefing, attacking multiple outlets for their coverage of the ongoing Iran war – though one remark in particular left onlookers stunned for being unusually candid.Hegseth, a former Fox News contributor, took aim at several outlets during the briefing for news headlines that he argued painted a distorted picture of the Trump administration’s ongoing military operations against Iran.“Some in this crew – in the press – just can’t stop! Allow me to make a few suggestions,” Hegseth said during the briefing.“For example: ‘Mideast war intensifies’ splashing on the screen the last couple of days, alongside civilian or energy targets that Iran has hit, because that’s what they do. What should the banner read instead? How about ‘Iran increasingly desperate?’ Because they are! They know it, and so do you!”Hegseth then pivoted to single out CNN, specifically for its reporting on the supposed panic within the Trump administration over the global fallout from Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a major shipping route through which a fifth of the world’s oil trade passes.“More fake news from CNN, reports that the Trump administration ‘underestimated’ the Iran war’s impact on the Strait of Hormuz. Patently ridiculous, of course!” Hegseth said. “It’s a fundamentally unserious report. The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better.”Hegseth’s reference to Ellison – a staunch ally to President Donald Trump and billionaire who runs Paramount Skydance, which is poised to acquire CNN in a proposed merger – was particularly telling, several critics noted.“Really shouting the quiet part out loud that Trump’s billionaire allies are buying up news publishers and controlling social media and AI platforms to push Trump’s lies and propaganda,” wrote Melanie D’Arrigo, executive director for the Campaign for New York Health, in a social media post Friday on X to her nearly 85,000 followers.“An administration, openly acknowledging they are looking forward to more favorable coverage from CNN’s future owner: Trump linked oligarch, David Ellison,” wrote X user “The Maine Wonk,” a prominent political commentator and self-described “radical centrist" to their nearly 115,000 followers. “Unnerving and embarrassing.”Veteran CNN reporter Barbara Starr also took aim at Hegseth over his remarks, reminding the Defense Secretary of both his 'legal and moral obligation' to defend a free press and that CNN war correspondents have died in their efforts to cover global conflicts.“Listen up Mr. Defense Secretary,” Starr wrote in a social media post on X in response to Hegseth’s remarks. “CNN has had personnel in combat zones for decades. CNN has had [personnel] killed and wounded and all with lives changed forever. You have a legal and moral obligation to defend the free press, even the ones you don’t personally like."Following the press conference, a CNN spokesperson told Raw Story: “we stand by our reporting.”“more fake news from CNN. The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better."Really shouting the quiet part out loud that Trump’s billionaire allies are buying up news publishers and controlling social media and AI platforms to push Trump’s lies and propaganda. https://t.co/tzjaRs15YR— Melanie D'Arrigo (@DarrigoMelanie) March 13, 2026