Tom Bowman
Tom Bowman is a NPR National Desk reporter covering the Pentagon.
In his current role, Bowman has traveled to Syria as well as Iraq and Afghanistan often for month-long visits and embedded with U.S. Marines and soldiers.
Before coming to NPR in April 2006, Bowman spent nine years as a Pentagon reporter at The Baltimore Sun. Altogether he was at The Sun for nearly two decades, covering the Maryland Statehouse, the U.S. Congress, the U.S. Naval Academy, and the National Security Agency (NSA). His coverage of racial and gender discrimination at NSA led to a Pentagon investigation in 1994.
Initially Bowman imagined his career path would take him into academia as a history, government, or journalism professor. During college Bowman worked as a stringer at The Patriot Ledger in Quincy, Mass. He also worked for the Daily Transcript in Dedham, Mass., and then as a reporter at States News Service, writing for the Miami Herald and the Anniston (Ala.) Star.
Bowman is a co-winner of a 2006 National Headliners' Award for stories on the lack of advanced tourniquets for U.S. troops in Iraq. In 2010, he received an Edward R. Murrow Award for his coverage of a Taliban roadside bomb attack on an Army unit.
Bowman earned a Bachelor of Arts in history from St. Michael's College in Winooski, Vermont, and a master's degree in American Studies from Boston College.
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Four shipyards are getting the extra help. Officials say, if left unchecked, aircraft and submarine maintenance backlogs would result in delays in returning ships to the fleet.
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The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff says the idea that the military would ban anyone hospitalized for COVID-19 from enlisting is still just a draft memo.
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While most of the country is under lockdown, the U.S. military continues its operations. Troops continue their training, and the Air Force keeps delivering supplies worldwide during the pandemic.
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The Army says it will adhere to social distancing rules. Officials said that training will operate at "a reduced capacity," but did not offer specifics. Basic training had been paused for two weeks.
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Coronavirus testing in the U.S. military is as limited as it is among civilians. Even if testing availability increases, it would be enough only for critical jobs, like cyber or nuclear forces.
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The sailor from the USS Theodore Roosevelt tested positive for COVID-19 in March. The ship's captain was relieved of command for urging his superiors to do more to protect his crew.
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Defense officials say that the hospital ship USNS Comfort will now accept patients with Covid-19. And, the acting Navy secretary has resigned over his handling of a virus-stricken aircraft carrier.
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The coronavirus has infected dozens of sailors on the USS Theodore Roosevelt. The outbreak is just one example of how the virus could wreak havoc on U.S. military life.
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U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper spoke with NPR's Steve Inskeep on Wednesday on how his department is contributing to the coronavirus response. NPR's Pentagon correspondent reviews the tape.
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Right now just over 2,000 members of the National Guard are assisting governors in 27 states, but the head of the National Guard Bureau said that number could double by this weekend.