Chief Historian's Footnote

By Jim Malachowski

Article published on: December 1, 2025 in the Army History Winter 2025 Issue

Read Time: < 2 mins

Jim Malachowski

The idea that trust is the coin of our realm has never been more important. Social media and generative artificial intelligence applications, which can create the illusion of facts and false realities, have influenced thinking and behavior and, ultimately, have eroded trust. In Truth Decay, the RAND Corporation describes how advancements in technology, combined with societal polarization, negatively impact democracy.¹ Today, the public has less faith in traditional sources of information, and only 22 percent of Americans say they trust their government.²

In a world where information—and deliberate disinformation— is readily available, historians provide stability by adding context and giving meaning to data. The Center of Military History (CMH) and the Army Historical Program (AHP) aim to cultivate a culture of trust within the U.S. Army by documenting its history, even when that history does not portray the Army in a favorable light. With the rapid advancement of technology and the shift toward information-centric and multidomain warfare, the need for honest and accessible history is more important than ever to the warfighter and the nation.

Let’s consider three opportunities for historians to build trust. First, official history must be authoritative and authentic. The primary responsibility of an official historian is to provide accurate and reliable reports, essentially serving as a public trustee of truth. The American Historical Association’s standards of conduct emphasize that professional integrity, grounded in trust and respect, is fundamental to scholarship.³ Similarly, Kent Roberts Greenfield, the Army’s first chief historian, noted in The Historian and the Army that honesty is essential for official history.⁴ Therefore, the authenticity of source documents and material must be ensured in every step of our process—from the tactical edge to the archive. Because data preservation is often overlooked in the field due to the high operational tempo of contingency and wartime operations, we deploy Military History Detachments to document operations and support both local commanders and Army service component command history offices.

Second, every member of the AHP must build credibility and expertise and foster a spirit of ownership. We gain credibility by integrating into the mission and by providing actionable information with historical context to address today’s problems. We build expertise by completing Functional Community 61 courses and professional military education, which help us understand how the Army operates as an institution, as part of the joint force team, and at all levels of warfare. We present at conferences, soldier events, and community talks, sharing the Army’s history. We systematically document the Army’s operations, activities, and investments, building the archive that will support future commanders. Regardless of the operational tempo, we adhere strictly to historical methods of source criticism when collecting, evaluating, and interpreting documents. Additionally, we become experts in derivative classification processes and ensure these items are properly marked and safeguarded.

Lastly, we build trust by producing history that meets our customers’ needs. In a memo written shortly after World War II, General Dwight D. Eisenhower stated that “the historical record

of the Army’s operations as well as the manner in which these were accomplished are public property, and . . . the right of the citizens to the full story is unquestioned.”⁵ Our writing must ref lect the understanding that the history of the Army is the history of our nation, and we must pay attention to the needs of our audiences as an unread work carries little value. Senior leaders and commanders may need a concise two-page summary that puts the bottom line up front. Some may want short pamphlets, historical studies, or monographs. Others may gravitate toward multimedia products. The AHP, a leader in digital history, offers podcasts, digital storytelling, and interactive experiences like Army Trails and the projects at West Point’s digital history center.⁶ Recently, CMH added a series of in-progress reviews through which a cross-functional team identifies digital media and technology extensions that will roll out with and support each new publication. This framework will grow to encompass every product the center produces as we work to expand the accessibility of Army history within the digital sphere.

While these practices help nurture trust in CMH and the U.S. Army, they are not a panacea. They rely on hard work by everyone involved. Writing authoritative, authentic, and trusted official history will only make a difference when people read and interact with our publications, whether in print or online.

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