The Department of Defense has ordered a pause on all of its official social media accounts, unless the posts elevate the second Trump administration’s mission at the southern border or are informational updates, according to three U.S. defense officials.
The officials told NBC News that an official memo detailing the guidelines was distributed Friday, but that service members and non-military employees had been told through word of mouth to stand down on issuing posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, or updates on any other official social media accounts beginning on Thursday. Many DoD social media accounts had already gone quiet by the time the memo went out.
The social media standdown will last until February 3, according to the memo. In addition to exceptions for material about the southern border, the DoD has also allowed its personnel to re-post announcements from the official White House account and to post updates about certain kinds of information including base operations, road closures, delays for clinics and schools, and recruiting.
The Pentagon’s sudden review of its social media is meant to ensure that its content, which is disseminated to millions of followers online, zeros in on the new administration’s priorities for the DoD. The department wants to make certain its social media account’s messaging and updates are consistent with the Trump administration’s goals.
Under Trump, the Pentagon also intends to update the look of some social media accounts that are not consistent with the branding of the new administration.
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