--- title: "There’s a lot going on in the world of military news, and we need your help" description: "Send us your story ideas about what news matters most to service members, military families, and veterans." date: "2025-02-21" modified: "2025-02-21" authors: - name: "Jeff Schogol" job_title: "Senior Pentagon Reporter" link: "https://taskandpurpose.com/authors/jeff-schogol.md" url: "https://taskandpurpose.com/news/military-veterans-news/" categories: - "Field Guide" - "Military Life" - "News" - "The Pentagon Rundown" --- # There’s a lot going on in the world of military news, and we need your help ![Sgt. Maj. Jim Lanham, sergeant major of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, speaks to Marines during an all-hands formation aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) while underway in the Pacific Ocean, July 26, 2017. Lanham and Col. Tye R. Wallace, commanding officer of the 31st MEU, encouraged the Marines and Sailors of the 31st MEU to continue to act as ambassadors of the Marine Corps. The 31st MEU partners with the Navy’s Amphibious Squadron 11 to form the amphibious component of the Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group. The 31st MEU and PHIBRON 11 combine to provide a cohesive blue-green team capable of accomplishing a variety of missions across the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Stormy Mendez/Released)]() *Sgt. Maj. Jim Lanham, sergeant major of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, speaks to Marines during an all-hands formation aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) while underway in the Pacific Ocean, July 26, 2017. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Stormy Mendez.* Happy Friday. As you have no doubt noticed from recent editions of [The Pentagon Rundown](), the past several weeks have produced a tidal wave of news. To ensure we stay focused on what matters most to our readers, we’d like to hear from you. We need your help filtering out the background noise and finding the stories that matter most to service members, military families, and veterans. When federal agencies like the [Department of Veterans Affairs announce they are cutting employees](), it’s our job to put into human terms what those decisions mean — not just for those impacted by policy changes, but for those who rely on the organizations where these things are happening. People are not numbers and our stories need to go beyond figures and data points to relay the human cost of what we cover. We don’t care about palace intrigue or defense industry inside baseball. But when advocates fear that an executive order might prevent troops from getting [the care they need for routine medical conditions](), we have an obligation to draw attention to it so others don’t suffer in silence. Amid all the uncertainty swirling around, you deserve to know if troops will [have access to reproductive care](); if Defense Department schools, where military families send their kids, are [banning library books](); and whether the military services are [actually putting people first.]() In order to write about all that, we need your insight. What stories should we be pursuing? What are the consequences of recent decisions by senior civilian and military leaders? What questions should we be asking those in leadership positions? To be clear, we also want to know about the good things that troops, families, and veterans continue to do. And we need your help staying abreast of the latest cultural trends within the military and veteran community. (Are [Chuck Norris jokes]() still a thing? Asking for a friend.) Please feel free to email me directly at [schogol@taskandpurpose.com ]()about what you feel we need to write about. I can’t promise that I will write a story based on every email, but I am more than happy to listen — that’s how I learn. Thank you. Jeff Schogol ## Author Jeff Schogol is the former senior Pentagon reporter for Task & Purpose. He reported on both the Department of Defense as a whole and individual services, covering a variety of topics that include personnel, policy, military justice, deployments, and technology. ### Author social links [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]() [Twitter]()