The New York Times filed a lawsuit Thursday against the Pentagon, attempting to overturn new rules imposed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that have led to most mainstream media outlets being banished from the building.

The newspaper said the rules violate the Constitution's freedom of speech and due process provisions, since they give Hegseth the power to determine on his own whether a reporter should be banned.

Outlets such as the Times walked out of the Pentagon rather than agree to the rules as a condition for getting a press credential.

The Pentagon press room now includes mostly conservative outlets that agreed to the rules, and representatives from those organizations participated Tuesday in a briefing with Hegseth's press secretary.

“The policy is an attempt to exert control over reporting the government dislikes,” said Charles Stadtlander, spokesman for the Times. The newspaper filed the case with the U.S. District Court in Washington.

The Pentagon had no immediate response to a request for comment on lawsuit.

Despite losing credentials, outlets denied access to the Pentagon have continued reporting on the military.

They have led coverage this past week on stories that questioned Hegseth's role in military strikes on boats with alleged drug smugglers, including one targeted with a second strike after survivors were spotted.

Nevertheless, the Times said denial of access to the Pentagon restricts its reporters' ability to do their job.

Because the new policy gives Hegseth the right to oust reporters working on stories he does not like, even if those stories do not involve classified information, it has a chilling effect on journalists, the newspaper argued in court papers.

Lawyers are also concerned similar restrictions will be put in place at other federal agencies.

The Pentagon has argued that the policy imposes “common sense” rules that protect the military from release of information that could put them in danger.

During her briefing Tuesday, Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson said the legacy media outlets are not missed.

“The American people don’t trust these propagandists because they stopped telling the truth,” Wilson said. “So, we’re not going to beg these old gatekeepers to come back and we’re not rebuilding a broken model just to appease them.”