{"id":14577,"date":"2026-07-23T12:02:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T07:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=14577"},"modified":"2026-07-23T12:02:00","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T07:02:00","slug":"navy-says-it-will-no-longer-release-sailors-service-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=14577","title":{"rendered":"Navy says it will no longer release sailors&#8217; service history"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"prism-article-body\">\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao MvWXB TjIXL aGjvy ebVHC \"><span class=\"oyrPY qlwaB AGxeB  \">WASHINGTON &#8212; <\/span>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\u2019s service history \u2014 information that has been freely offered by the service for decades.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">The move, which officials say is being driven by increased security threats and harassment concerns, comes amid a host of other restrictions on press access largely driven by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. <\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">The restrictions, which include a policy that reporters must be accompanied by an official escort on Pentagon grounds, are themselves playing out against a backdrop of escalating tension between President Donald Trump and media outlets whose content or reporting practices anger him.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">Last Thursday, the Navy\u2019s top spokesman, Rear Admiral John Robinson, <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mynavyhr.navy.mil\/Portals\/55\/Messages\/NAVADMIN\/NAV2026\/NAV26170.pdf?ver=djN-vsaS8C7eqh0Y9eYjjw%3d%3d\">released a policy that mandated<\/a> 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 had decided to expand the policy to deny access to any sailor\u2019s service information, in the interest of equality.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">Thresh told The Associated Press that the Navy would still confirm whether someone is a sailor, but only if it deems the request \u201cof high public interest,\u201d and no other details would be offered until the undefined threat has passed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">Information about sailors&#8217; service history, such as units they\u2019ve been assigned and awards they\u2019ve earned \u2014 information the Navy says it will now withhold \u2014 is critical in providing information and context when service members are involved in major news events. It is also information that a constellation of federal laws and Pentagon policies say should be made available on request.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">The Pentagon\u2019s <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/www.esd.whs.mil\/portals\/54\/documents\/dd\/issuances\/dodm\/540011r.pdf#page=39\">governing document on its privacy program<\/a> notes that information like a service member\u2019s rank, duty assignments, awards, and service status is categorized as information \u201cthat is normally releasable\u201d and \u201cmay be disclosed without a clearly unwarranted invasion of their personal privacy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">However, Thresh, in an emailed statement, said they will now only release these details if the sailor is \u201ca public figure or extenuating circumstances exist.\u201d These are terms that the Navy can define for itself, and early indications suggest the sea service is not inclined to use these exemptions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">First Amendment attorney Floyd Abrams noted that the Navy\u2019s new policy could make reporting on wounded or injured sailors much more challenging. \u201cThat effort at suppression of speech is flatly inconsistent with the First Amendment,\u201d Abrams said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">He said the policy seemed \u201can obvious effort to limit information, however newsworthy, that might lead to questions about public policy decisions \u2026 there is no reason to think that this is anything less than an effort to prevent \u2018bad\u2019 press about the conduct of the administration with respect to our service people.\u201d <\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">The Navy cited the new policy last week after the AP requested the biography of a pilot with the Blue Angels, the Navy&#8217;s demonstration squadron, following <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/hegseth-blue-angels-military-flyovers-safety-c2601ce50f433996c919464f1de7985c\">a controversial maneuver over a crowded beach<\/a>. Robinson\u2019s office refused to provide the pilot\u2019s biography despite the fact that his name, photo, and other service details were posted on the official Blue Angels website. Thresh did provide a copy of the biography personally after the AP began inquiring about the policy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">Robinson\u2019s office did not respond to questions about the Chief of Naval Personnel\u2019s broadening of his policy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">The restrictions are just the latest in a series of moves that the military has taken to restrict access to information. Last month, the military asked Congress for the ability to withhold certain types of unclassified records from the public. <\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \"><a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/ogc.osd.mil\/Portals\/99\/OLC%20Proposals\/FY%202027\/25Jun2026Proposals.pdf?ver=TqOiHgaSVNW4PGXKVGYmZw%3d%3d#page=22\">The legislative proposal<\/a>, first reported by CBS, would create a new section of federal law that would allow the defense secretary to exempt certain \u201ccontrolled unclassified information,\u201d or CUI, from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">Transparency advocates, and <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dodig.mil\/reports.html\/Article\/3413433\/audit-of-the-dods-implementation-and-oversight-of-the-controlled-unclassified-i\/\">even the Pentagon\u2019s own internal watchdog<\/a>, have described the term CUI as inconsistently applied and overused. Critics have argued that it is arbitrarily used to keep embarrassing information from being made public.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">Last year, the Pentagon attempted to impose major <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pentagon-journalists-new-restrictions-hegseth-b9e70801f7d7930251a0740e7168f775\">restrictions on journalists working inside the Pentagon,<\/a> which, in turn, led most news outlets to turn in their access badges and <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pentagon-press-access-hegseth-trump-restrictions-5d9c2a63e4e03b91fc1546bb09ffbf12\">walk out<\/a> rather than agree to the new rules. The policy is <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pentagon-press-access-new-york-times-lawsuit-df3330d202a87f41f25effc9ab96abab\">now being litigated<\/a> in federal court.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">This summer, the Pentagon went a step further and declared that its press office <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/pentagon-media-restrictions-trump-hegseth-91bae8b82d16b96091f31518cc4d4c72\">was now a classified space<\/a> inaccessible to journalists.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">___<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC eTIW sUzSN \">Noveck reported from New York.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>WASHINGTON &#8212; 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\u2019s service history \u2014 information that has been freely offered by the service for decades. The move, which officials say is being driven by increased security threats and harassment&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14578,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i.abcnewsfe.com\/a\/2ab93d08-32a6-447d-a354-e1a667f5de21\/wirestory_b4d5d0f60709692e107e3331370422cd_16x9.jpg?w=1600","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14577","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-hub"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14577","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14577"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14577\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14577"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14577"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14577"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}