CENTCOM does not have a "blacklist."

People to Disregard

August 24, 2026 · Ibid.

Editorial cartoon: in a cramped CENTCOM press office a shrugging civilian staffer, phone wedged under his jaw and a brass nameplate reading ALLEE on his desk, drops a freshly printed statement into a steel card drawer stencilled DISREGARD that is already packed with tabbed cards; behind him an officer sets down a receiver beneath a framed portrait plated HEGSETH, beside a spike of unanswered press queries.

A CENTCOM public affairs staffer told an Intercept reporter he could be added to a secret list of journalists "to disregard," and confirmed the list exists. Asked in writing, CENTCOM's press office replied that it "does not have a 'blacklist,'" while a U.S. official said Hegseth's office has a standing order not to engage the reporter. The reporter's unanswered questions concerned disparate U.S. casualty counts from the Iran war, medevac flights, and civilian deaths including a family killed in Tehran.