The Navy SEALs Break Their Silence -- Stayton Bonner, Men's Journal
How the elite special-operations force went from top secret – to out of control.
Founded in 1962, the Navy SEALs have long presented an irresistible conflict of interest for the military.
For tactical purposes, the Navy attempts to maintain the unit's secrecy – it rarely even acknowledges the existence of the covert SEAL Team Six – while simultaneously promoting the SEALs' mystique to boost recruitment numbers. In 2005, the SEALs adopted a 440-word code of secrecy stating: "I do not advertise the nature of my work, nor seek recognition for my actions," a pledge that the Navy itself broke soon thereafter. Just over a year later, in an effort to meet an enlistment goal of increasing recruitment numbers by 15 percent, the Navy's in-house media arm began courting Hollywood producers. The resulting film, 2012's 'Act of Valor' – a work of fiction starring real SEALs who were tasked by the Navy to perform – made $80 million, was promoted in a Super Bowl ad, and its footage later used to train recruits.
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My Comment: Those days of secrecy and being unknown are now long gone.
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