New policy extends removal of public-facing information to all sailors
The U.S. Navy is taking a major step to restrict press access to information about service members by no longer releasing information about any sailor’s service history — information that has been freely offered by the service for decades, the Associated Press reported.
The move, which officials said is being driven by increased security threats and harassment concerns, extends an accelerating series of Pentagon measures limiting how the press and public can obtain information about service members under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Last Thursday, the Navy’s top spokesman, Rear Admiral John Robinson, released a policy that mandated the sea service remove all public-facing information about its commanding officers. Capt. Candice Thresh, a spokeswoman for the Chief of Naval Personnel, said the office then decided to expand the policy to deny access to any sailor’s service information, in the interest of equality.
The restrictions are themselves playing out against a backdrop of escalating tension between President Donald Trump and media outlets whose content or reporting practices anger him, according to the Associated Press.