DOD-wide social media pause rescinded
Pentagon leadership revoked the department- and military-wide social media suspension that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s team temporarily instituted to “reorient” all public-facing communications to reflect the new administration’s vision and objectives, according to an internal government email obtained by DefenseScoop on Monday.
President Donald Trump has been moving swiftly since the start of his second term on Jan. 20 to reshape American policies and the federal government’s structure — particularly through a series of sweeping executive orders. Personnel inside many agencies have subsequently been pulling down and scrubbing official websites and social media profiles, as well as public data repositories, in recent weeks to ensure online content complies with those new mandates.
In a Jan. 24 memorandum to civilian and combatant command leaders, the Defense Department’s recently sworn-in Chief of Staff Joe Kasper announced a 10-day social media freeze on all official accounts and across all platforms, beginning the following day. Posts about military operations near the U.S.-Mexico border were notably among a few exceptions for content that official accounts were permitted to publish during the temporary halt.
The email detailing the newest guidance penned to an unclear number of public affairs staff, which was obtained by DefenseScoop and authenticated by several DOD sources Monday, includes a statement “provided on behalf of the Acting Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs” Jonathan Ullyot.
“[On] 3 February 2025, the Department of Defense rescinds the social media utilization pause (dated 24 January), and directs all organizations, agencies, commands, and the Military Departments to employ social media platforms primarily to communicate their primary organization/unit mission, showcase lethality, promote meritocracy, demonstrate high standards and readiness, and support our recruiting goals,” Ullyot stated.
He pointed to the “Message to the Force” Hegseth issued on Jan. 25 that broadly outlined aims for the military “to restore [its] warrior ethos.”
“How we approach communicating these important messages through digital communication channels — especially through the DoD’s social media platforms — is critical towards achieving this end state,” Ullyot stated in the email.
He also suggested that Hegseth will provide more “formal departmental communication priorities” to guide public affairs and outreach activities “in the months ahead.”
Multiple government officials who spoke to DefenseScoop on the condition of anonymity about the latest social media instructions Monday said there is currently palpable uncertainty inside press shops at military and federal agencies, where many don’t know if they’re clued in on the latest rules around content production.
“There’s the official guidance coming from [the Office of the Secretary of Defense], and then there’s the interpretation by agency [or] department leadership on what that guidance means, or what else could be coming. And there’s a lot of room between those two things. I don’t think you’ll see a return to normal content levels until detailed, official guidance on what to post or not post comes from OSD,” one government official said.
