Lead

The New York Times has asked a federal court to throw out subpoenas issued by the Justice Department to journalists who reported on security concerns about the new Air Force One, escalating a legal battle over press freedom and the government's ability to compel reporters to reveal their sources.

The newspaper filed a motion to quash the subpoenas on Wednesday, according to The Guardian. The filing was made under seal in the Southern District of New York, where three journalists were summoned last Friday to testify before a federal grand jury in Manhattan. The Times had said it expected five journalists to be subpoenaed, but three were ultimately served.

David McCraw, the Times's senior vice president and deputy general counsel, called the subpoenas "an extraordinary escalation in President Trump's efforts to threaten and intimidate independent news organizations," as reported by Deutsche Welle. In a statement quoted by The Guardian, he said the subpoenas were "brought in bad faith to punish The Times for its coverage" and that the newspaper would go to court to defend its journalists' right to report freely.

Coverage comparison

The subpoenas stem from two articles the Times published in early July. The first reported that President Donald Trump left Turkey on an older model Air Force One rather than the new jet, a gift from Qatar, at the urging of the Secret Service amid security concerns. The second reported that the new aircraft lacked some of the advanced security features of the older planes, including antimissile capabilities.

The reports cited anonymous sources, which the Justice Department is now seeking to uncover. The subpoenas were issued by Manhattan US Attorney Jay Clayton on July 10, according to the Jerusalem Post, and were delivered to reporters at their homes.

A federal judge, Arun Subramanian, has paused enforcement of the subpoenas and scheduled a hearing for Thursday at 2 p.m. ET in Manhattan federal court. Prosecutors have asked the judge to put the subpoenas on hold for two weeks, while the Times has asked him to throw them out entirely, the Jerusalem Post reported.

A separate motion unsealed Monday revealed that the administration also sought phone records of several Times journalists and some of their relatives, according to The Guardian. The Times's lawyers noted that some phone-record subpoenas covered a period beginning January 1, 2026, months before the articles in question, and argued this suggested the department was using the investigation "to forage for information about the journalists' source relationships more broadly." The judge has frozen enforcement of those subpoenas pending a ruling.

The subpoenas are part of a broader crackdown on media leaks. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Monday that the Pentagon and the Justice Department had created a joint taskforce to identify and prosecute unauthorized disclosures of sensitive information to the press, as reported by The Guardian. Hegseth said the taskforce would empower the war department's office of general counsel to request and receive all information and records concerning media leak investigations.

News organizations and free-press advocates have condemned the subpoenas as an attempt to intimidate the press. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression was among those criticizing the move, according to France 24. The FBI's search of a Washington Post reporter's home earlier this year and the seizure of her electronic devices was cited as a precursor to this escalation, The Guardian reported.

Key claims

  • The New York Times filed a motion to quash subpoenas served on journalists who reported on security concerns involving the new Air Force One.
  • The subpoenas were issued by the Justice Department and seek to compel testimony before a federal grand jury.
  • The new Air Force One was a gift from Qatar and lacked some advanced security features of the older aircraft, including antimissile capabilities, according to the Times's reporting.
  • The Trump administration spent $400 million to retrofit and upgrade the Qatari-gifted jet, as reported by The Guardian.
  • President Trump used an older model Air Force One to leave a NATO summit in Turkey, the Times reported.
  • The Justice Department has justified the subpoenas by saying reporters are not the targets; rather, those leaking classified information are, as reported by BBC.
  • The defense secretary announced a joint taskforce to identify and prosecute leaks, a claim carried by The Guardian.

Perspectives

The New York Times

The newspaper argues that the subpoenas are an unconstitutional attempt to punish it for its coverage and to intimidate journalists. In its motion, the Times says the subpoenas violate the constitutional rights of the newspaper and its journalists, and that the Justice Department's timeframe for phone-record requests indicates a broader effort to uncover source relationships beyond the articles in question.

The Justice Department

The department says it is investigating illegal leaks of national security information and that reporters are not the targets of the investigation. Prosecutors have asked the judge to uphold the subpoenas, arguing the department has an important role in ensuring that those entrusted with the nation's secrets do not share them improperly.

Journalism advocacy groups

Groups such as the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression have criticized the subpoenas as part of a pattern of anti-press actions by the administration, arguing they threaten press freedom and the public's right to know.