Justice Department subpoenas four New York Times reporters over their Air Force One stories

Federal agents delivered grand jury subpoenas to New York Times reporters at their homes Friday night, seeking to compel four journalists to testify about their reporting on the Qatari-donated Boeing 747 now in service as Air Force One.

The subpoenas went to Julian E. Barnes, Eric Lipton, Tyler Pager and Eric Schmitt, the four bylines on a Times story published Wednesday, according to the Times. They order the reporters to appear before a federal grand jury in Manhattan on Wednesday. The Times said the subpoenas describe the testimony as sought "in regard to an alleged violation of federal criminal law."

The subpoenas were issued by Jay Clayton, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. Trump has nominated Clayton to be director of national intelligence, and Clayton is scheduled to appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Wednesday, the same day the reporters are ordered to testify.

What the Times reported

Wednesday's story, citing anonymous sources, said the Secret Service urged Trump to leave a NATO summit in Turkey aboard an older Air Force One rather than the 747 Qatar gave the United States last year. A follow-up story the next day said the donated plane lacked defensive countermeasures carried by the older aircraft, including antimissile systems.

Trump flew the new plane to Turkey and left on an older model for RAF Mildenhall in England, where he switched back to the new aircraft for the flight to Joint Base Andrews. The switch came as a ceasefire with Iran collapsed and the United States carried out airstrikes there.

Trump denied the switch was driven by security concerns, and said on social media that the Mildenhall stop was so service members could see the new plane. Asked aboard the flight whether he was aware of credible Iranian threats against Air Force One, he said, "I have a threat all the time. I'm No. 1 on their list." The administration spent about $400 million retrofitting the jet, which entered service last week.

Before the Wednesday story ran, a senior FBI official asked a Times reporter and editor to hold it and to identify the story's sources, without explaining why, a Times spokesman told NPR. Both refused.

What each side says

The Justice Department said the reporters are not the subject of the investigation. "To be clear, reporters are not the targets, those leaking classified information are," the department said, adding that it will not "stop investigating the people who work in the administration and think it's okay to leak classified information impacting national security."

David McCraw, deputy general counsel of the Times, called the subpoenas a "brazen act." He said in a statement: "The appearance of Federal law enforcement agents on the doorstep of news reporters should shock the conscience of any American who believes in the Constitution and the press freedom it protects."

Bruce D. Brown, president of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, said the subpoenas "break from longstanding Justice Department practice to protect the public interest and press independence by requiring prosecutors to only seek information from reporters as a last resort when all other avenues have been exhausted." He said senators of both parties should question Clayton about them at Wednesday's hearing.

Adam Steinbaugh, a senior attorney at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, said hauling reporters before grand juries "sends a chilling message to journalists and whistleblowers alike."

The White House did not answer messages from the Associated Press seeking comment on the subpoenas.

The rules the department is operating under

In April 2025, then Attorney General Pam Bondi rescinded a Biden administration policy that barred prosecutors from secretly seizing reporters' phone records in leak investigations. The rescission restored the department's authority to use subpoenas, court orders and search warrants against journalists in those cases. Bondi's memo said the press is "presumptively entitled to advance notice of such investigative activities," that subpoenas are to be "narrowly drawn," and that warrants must include protocols limiting intrusion into newsgathering material.

Compelling reporters to identify sources in front of a grand jury remains rare. The department has seized journalists' phone records under both parties, but it seldom tries to put reporters on the stand. Earlier this year it subpoenaed reporters at the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal, then withdrew both subpoenas. In January, FBI agents searched the home of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson as part of a leak investigation tied to a Pentagon contractor accused of taking classified material home.

What happens next

The four reporters are due before the grand jury Wednesday. Journalists who refuse to answer questions before a grand jury can be held in contempt, and the Times has not said whether the reporters will comply, move to quash the subpoenas, or take another course. Clayton's confirmation hearing is set for the same day.