Journalist (JO) — Discontinued

RATING EVOLUTION

1. // Decommissioned · 2006
   JO
   Journalist
   1948–2006
2. // Active Today · Successor
   MC
   Mass Communication Specialist
   View active rating →

WHY THE RATING WAS DISCONTINUED

Merged with Photographer's Mate (PH), Lithographer (LI), Illustrator/Draftsman (DM), and broadcast technicians into the new Mass Communication Specialist (MC) rating in 2006.

OVERVIEW

Journalist (JO) was the U.S. Navy's enlisted print-and-broadcast journalism rating. JOs wrote and edited base newspapers (the Navy's "plan-of-the-day" papers and overseas command newspapers), produced ship's newsletters, supported Navy News Service wire copy, and operated American Forces Network (AFN) radio and television affiliates at overseas installations. The rating was the print-and-broadcast complement to the Photographer's Mate (PH) imagery rating.

JO was disestablished on 30 September 2006 in the visual-information consolidation that created the Mass Communication Specialist (MC) rating. JOs converted to MC, and the print, radio, and television skills survive as MC specialties.

WHAT THEY DID

Journalists wrote and edited base newspapers and command newsletters; produced Navy News Service wire copy; operated AFN radio and television affiliate broadcasts overseas; wrote and produced internal-information features and documentaries; supported the command's public-affairs office; and provided the Navy's internal-information capability. Senior JOs ran shore public-affairs detachments and AFN broadcast stations.

NOTABLE FOR

• Wrote and produced the Navy's internal journalism — base newspapers, ship's newsletters, Navy News Service
• Operated American Forces Network Radio and TV affiliates worldwide
• Source rating for the modern MC public-affairs skill set

HISTORY

Journalist was established in 1948 as the Navy formalized its public-affairs and internal-information functions after World War II. Through the Cold War, JOs ran the print and broadcast communications channels that connected the Navy to its people: base and ship newspapers, Navy News Service, and AFN broadcasting at every major overseas station from Yokosuka to Naples to Iceland.

By the early 2000s the digital convergence of print, web, photo, video, and graphics made it inefficient to maintain separate JO/PH/LI/DM ratings. The Navy disestablished all four and created the consolidated Mass Communication Specialist (MC) rating effective 30 September 2006.

TYPICAL PLATFORMS & UNITS

• Command public-affairs offices at every major shore station
• AFN affiliate stations overseas — Yokosuka, Naples, Iceland, Diego Garcia
• Navy News Service and CHINFO field activities

HISTORICAL CAREER PATH

1. E-1/E-3
   Apprentice JO
   Recruit Training followed by JO A-school at Defense Information School, Fort Meade, MD; first tour with a fleet unit.
2. E-4/E-6
   Petty Officer JO
   Lead a JO work-center, qualify in core watchstations, and serve as the rating's section leader.
3. E-7+
   Chief Journalist
   Senior JO leader — Leading Chief Petty Officer of a JO division, instructor at the rating's A-school, or detailer at BUPERS until rating disestablishment in 2006.

SUCCESSOR RATINGS (ACTIVE TODAY)

• MC · Admin & Logistics
  Mass Communication Specialist

FOR VETERANS & FAMILIES

If a DD-214, retirement order, or family-history document lists the rating JO (Journalist), that is a legitimate U.S. Navy enlisted rating that was disestablished in 2006. Sailors who held this rating served in the admin & logistics community during 1948–2006.

The mission of JO is performed today by Mass Communication Specialist (MC). For VA benefits, MOS/rating-translator services, or transcript-of-service requests, reference both the historical JO rating code and the modern successor.

Official records: National Personnel Records Center (St. Louis, MO) holds U.S. Navy enlisted service records for veterans separated more than 62 years ago; later records are held by Navy Personnel Command in Millington, TN.

RELATED HISTORICAL RATINGS

Other decommissioned ratings whose mission was absorbed by the same active rating(s) as JO:

• PH · Decom 2006
  Photographer's Mate
• LI · Decom 2006
  Lithographer

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• When was the Journalist (JO) rating disestablished?
  The JO rating was disestablished in 2006. Merged with Photographer's Mate (PH), Lithographer (LI), Illustrator/Draftsman (DM), and broadcast technicians into the new Mass Communication Specialist (MC) rating in 2006.
• What rating did Journalist (JO) become?
  The successor rating is mass communication specialist. Active-duty JOs converted to the new rating(s) at disestablishment.
• What did a Navy Journalist (JO) do?
  Journalists wrote and edited base newspapers and command newsletters; produced Navy News Service wire copy; operated AFN radio and television affiliate broadcasts overseas; wrote and produced internal-information features and documentaries; supported the command's public-affairs office; and provided the Navy's internal-information capability. Senior JOs ran shore public-affairs detachments and AFN broadcast stations.
• Can I still claim the JO rating on my record?
  Yes — your DD-214 and Navy service record reflect the rating you held. The JO rating was a valid U.S. Navy enlisted rating from 1948 until 2006, and veterans who served in JO continue to use the rating designation in records, reunions, and veteran-affairs paperwork.

SOURCES

• Naval History and Heritage Command — U.S. Navy Ratings History
• NAVADMIN / OPNAV historical-rating disestablishment notices
• U.S. Navy Enlisted Career Path Reference — Journalist