Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth denied to the media on Monday that their reports would not sign on to the Pentagon’s restrictive new policy, using a “goodbye handwave” emoji in response to social media posts announcing their decisions.

The Associated Press, Reuters, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, CNN and NPR all said their journalists would not sign the new documents saying they continued to understand the new rules surrounding access to the Pentagon. Many published their statements on social media.

Hegseth responded to several such posts – including one from The Atlantic that said they were “fundamentally opposed” to the restrictions – with thisGoodbye emoji.

henI answered the same way To a Washington Post statement saying the policy undermines First Amendment protections “by placing unnecessary restrictions on gating and release of information.”

And himUsed the same emoji Above, a New York Times piece claiming that Pentagon rules threaten to penalize the Journal for “ordinary news gathering protected by the First Amendment.”

Hegseth has frequently shown hostility toward the press, both the media as a whole and individual journalists, and has continually restricted press access and account changes at the Pentagon.

Although his spokespeople often boasted about transparency, Hegseth’s office removed four outlets that passed this reporting to the Trump administration, including an America News Network and Breitbart News. When reporters complained to officials about the move, they removed four other news outlets, including The Hill, from their desks.

The magazines removed from their desks still had to work in order to work in the building, then Hegseth’s office also made a difference by restricting reports from the Pentagon press office’s coverage – one of the few places in the building that could be used to archive stories.

In May, Hegseth banned journalists with official escorts from most Pentagon hallways. The decision was seen as extreme because reporters had had access to the entire building and been under surveillance for decades. Secured or restricted areas have always been closed to the press with official permission.

With the Pentagon’s new guidelines, journalists are now not technically prohibited from researching, reporting on information about military operations or publishing stories that are considered sensitive or unclassified. However, they could be viewed as a “secretary or security risk” if they ask Defense Department personnel for such information, violating the rules.

The Pentagon describes advertising as a solicitation for tips and a request for service members to share non-public information, as many reporters do through their publications or personal social media platforms, in the absence of routine Defense Department news conferences

The Pentagon Press Association said last week that since the beginning of the year, Hegseth and other officials had “systematically restricted approval of information beyond the usual.”

Even several right-wing news organizations pushed back against the policy, including The Washington Times and News, which said the billions were “unnecessary and burdensome” and that reporters would not sign them.

Beat reporters now have until Tuesday to sign the new rules or turn in their press cards by Wednesday. Editors and journalists have said they will cover the U.S. military even without press credentials.