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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Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer has been forced out by the Secretary of Defense Mark Esper.
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The Navy officer pardoned for war crimes by President Trump is expected to be removed from the SEALs. Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher and three other SEALs could be ousted from the elite force.
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The Taliban released two Western hostages who were held for more than three years. The Afghan government released three Taliban prisoners. The move could be a precursor to restarting peace talks.
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It's official. All Marines can now carry umbrellas while wearing the service or dress uniform. This brings to an end a revered — for some — tradition of toughing it out in the rain.
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U.S. forces fighting ISIS could leave northeast Syria in just days. They are caught between two opposing armies: the Turkish military and Syrian Kurdish forces.
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As Turkey's operation against Kurdish fighters in northern Syria continues, the U.S. military is finding itself caught in the crossfire.
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The first day of a Turkish offensive against Kurdish-controlled territory in Syria is alarming U.S. allies there and could expand.
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Gen. Mazloum Kobani Abdi confirms that he's moved fighters to the border to protect Kurdish interests. He also denounced President Trump's claim that Turkey could lead the fight against ISIS.
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Two U.S. officials tell NPR that military leaders involved in countering ISIS were surprised by President Trump's sudden policy shift — pulling support for Kurdish allies from Northern Syria.
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James Verini's book will stand up with some of the best war reporting, as he takes an unblinking look at the dirtiest kind of battle — urban combat — and the human wreckage it leaves in its wake.