Author Archive

Ben Watson

Senior Multimedia Editor, Defense One

Ben Watson is an Army veteran who writes The D Brief daily newsletter and hosts the bimonthly Defense One Radio podcast. Since arriving in Washington in 2012, Ben has written and produced award-winning features on politics, international security, technology, and military history for NPR, The Atlantic and Defense One.
Threats

The D Brief: Shutdown watch; Lingering defense-strategy qs; JAGs’ unusual new jobs; Secret drone’s recent mission; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson
Threats

The D Brief: Domestic Guard missions, priced; More strikes on Somalia; New ‘non-kinetic’ cell aids planning; GAO’s missile-warning warning; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: CBP report belies ‘terrorist’ charges; Rubio threatens Venezuelan leaders; ‘Unsustainable’ national-security strategy?; EU, India near trade deal; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: Border Patrol boss out of MN; Misinformation pushback; Carrier reaches CENTCOM; Tariffs pledged on US shipbuilding partner; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: Feds kill again in Minnesota; National Defense Strategy drops; New USAF deployment concept; Space Force wants more troops; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Ideas

Defense One Radio, Ep. 202: The known perils of regime change

A scholar of civil wars warns against repeating the past mistakes from U.S. military interventions abroad.

  • Ben Watson and Monica Duffy Toft
Threats

The D Brief: Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’; Russian hybrid warfare; More Ukraine talks; Combat fitness, reimagined; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson
Threats

The D Brief: Trump backs down on Greenland; More troops prep for MN deployment; Army tank arrives early; Congress demands Golden Dome answers; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: Trump’s Greenland fixation undermines alliance; Cui bono?; Lawmakers set flat defense budget; How AI went DOD; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: Experts warn of war; Trump’s ‘state terror’; CNO’s upcoming instructions; China’s ‘full-stack’ defense-innovation cities; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: Lessons from Iraq; Trump’s Insurrection Act-threat; DIU seeks swarm controllers; Russia’s Starlink drones; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Featured eBooks
Intel and Analytics
Special Ops Technology
Future of the Army
Threats

The D Brief: Europe reinforces Greenland; Senate fails to limit Venezuela action; Navy’s next ships; The cost of ‘DoW’; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: Greenland discussions; Russian sabotage in Europe; ‘Ideological tuning’ in DOD AI; Some leave Al Udeid; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: ‘Perfidy’ in boat strike?; Pentagon’s new AI plan; Venezuela’s broken air defenses; Quantum space cameras; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: US bombs ISIS in Syria; Iranian protests swell; Execs rebuff oil plan; Meet the Army’s dronemakers; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: Trump: ‘I don’t need international law’; Senate votes to limit Venezuela action; USAF consolidates PEOs; Marines’ own robot wingman; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: Offshore banks to hold seized-oil profits; Pay caps for defense CEOs; Army’s flight-school outsourcing, snagged; Right-to-repair urged; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: Trump plans oil seizure; US forces seize tanker; Greenland seizure floated; Experts pan Maduro seizure; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson
Threats

The D Brief: Post-Maduro moves; Europe unites over Greenland; Marines’ ‘hidden crisis’; Jan. 6, remembered; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
Threats

The D Brief: Trump threatens more countries after Maduro abduction; SCOTUS rejects Guard deployment; Nigerian-strike fallout; 2025 scorecard; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston