In a significant stand against new government-imposed restrictions, numerous journalists handed in their access badges and exited the Pentagon on Wednesday. This marks a critical moment as reporters who traditionally cover the U.S. military are now pushed further from its core operations. Despite the nation’s leadership labeling the updated rules as “common sense” measures to manage what they describe as a “very disruptive” press, the move has been met with widespread disapproval from news outlets.

The new directives, introduced by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, faced almost unanimous rejection from the media. These rules would potentially subject journalists to expulsion should they attempt to report on any information, classified or otherwise, that had not received Hegseth’s approval for release. This shift has prompted a unified response from the press, who view it as a threat to journalistic freedom.

As the Defense Department’s 4 p.m. deadline loomed, reporters were seen packing up their belongings, with corridors lined with boxes of documents. Items such as chairs, a copying machine, books, and old photographs were carried out to the parking lot, signifying the abrupt departure from their workspaces. Around 40 to 50 journalists left the building together, a symbolic show of solidarity as they submitted their badges.

“It’s sad, but I’m also really proud of the press corps that we stuck together,” expressed Nancy Youssef of The Atlantic, who has held a desk at the Pentagon since 2007. As she departed, she took with her a map of the Middle East, a reminder of her commitment to continue reporting.

The long-term effects of these new regulations remain uncertain. However, news organizations have resolutely pledged to maintain comprehensive coverage of military affairs, regardless of their physical distance from the Pentagon’s inner workings.

Images of reporters effectively demonstrating against barriers to their work are unlikely to move supporters of President Donald Trump, many of whom resent journalists and cheer his efforts to make their jobs harder. Trump has been involved in court fights against The New York Times, CBS News, ABC News, the Wall Street Journal and The Associated Press in the past year.

Trump supports the new rules

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Tuesday, Trump backed his defense secretary’s new rules. “I think he finds the press to be very disruptive in terms of world peace,” Trump said. “The press is very dishonest.”

Even before issuing his new press policy, Hegseth, a former Fox News Channel host, has systematically choked off the flow of information. He’s held only two formal press briefings, banned reporters from accessing many parts of the sprawling Pentagon without an escort and launched investigations into leaks to the media.

He has called his new rules “common sense” and said the requirement that journalists sign a document outlining the rules means they acknowledge the new rules, not necessarily agree to them. Journalists see that as a distinction without a difference.

“What they’re really doing, they want to spoon-feed information to the journalist, and that would be their story. That’s not journalism,” said Jack Keane, a retired U.S. Army general and Fox News analyst, said on Hegseth’s former network.

When he served, Keane said he required new brigadier generals to take a class on the role of the media in a democracy so they wouldn’t be intimidated and also see reporters as a conduit to the American public. “There were times when stories were done that made me flinch a little bit,” he said. “But that’s usually because we had done something that wasn’t as good as we should have done it.”

Youssef said it made no sense to sign on to rules that said reporters should not solicit military officials for information. “To agree to not solicit information is to agree to not be a journalist,” she said. “Our whole goal is soliciting information.”

Reporting on US military affairs will continue — from a greater distance

Several reporters posted on social media when they turned in their press badges.

“It’s such a tiny thing, but I was really proud to see my picture up on the wall of Pentagon correspondents,” wrote Heather Mongilio, a reporter for USNINews, which covers the Navy. “Today, I’ll hand in my badge. The reporting will continue.”

Mongilio, Youssef and others emphasized that they’ll continue to do their jobs no matter where their desks are. Some sources will continue to speak with them, although they say some in the military have been chilled by threats from Pentagon leadership.

In an essay, NPR reporter Tom Bowman noted the many times he’d been tipped off by people he knew from the Pentagon and while embedded in the military about what was happening, even if it contradicted official lines put out by leadership. Many understand the media’s role.

“They knew the American public deserved to know what’s going on,” Bowman wrote. “With no reporters able to ask questions, it seems the Pentagon leadership will continue to rely on slick social media posts, carefully orchestrated short videos and interviews with partisan commentators and podcasters. No one should think that’s good enough.”

The Pentagon Press Association, whose 101 members represent 56 news outlets, has spoken out against the rules. Organizations from across the media spectrum, from legacy organizations like The Associated Press and The New York Times to outlets like Fox and the conservative Newsmax, told their reporters to leave instead of signing the new rules.

Only the conservative One America News Network signed on. Its management likely believes it will have greater access to Trump administration officials by showing its support, Gabrielle Cuccia, a former Pentagon reporter who was fired by OANN earlier this year for writing an online column criticizing Hegseth’s media policies, told the AP in an interview.