Navy Halts Release of Sailors’ Service Histories

The U.S. Navy announced a new policy that ends the routine release of individual sailors’ service histories. Rear Admiral John Robinson, the Navy’s top spokesman, issued the directive after the service’s chief of naval personnel, Capt. Under the policy, the Navy will confirm only whether a person is a sailor, and will provide additional details—such as unit assignments, awards, and rank—only when the request is deemed “of high public interest” or the individual is a “public figure” or “extenuating circumstances exist.” The Navy has not defined those exemptions.

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Robinson’s office declined an Associated Press request for the biography of a Blue Angels pilot after a controversial maneuver over a crowded beach, despite the pilot’s name, photo, and other service details being publicly posted on the squadron’s website. Thresh later supplied the biography directly to the AP after the outlet inquired about the policy.

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• “That effort at suppression of speech is flatly inconsistent with the First Amendment,” — Floyd Abrams, first amendment attorney

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The Navy’s action follows a series of recent military measures that tighten control over unclassified information, including a congressional proposal to expand “controlled unclassified information” exemptions from Freedom of Information Act disclosure and a prior Pentagon decision to classify its press office. Transparency advocates and the Pentagon’s internal watchdog have expressed concern that such restrictions could hinder public oversight and journalistic reporting on service-member matters.

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