{"id":21278,"date":"2026-04-23T12:06:20","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T12:06:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/?p=21278"},"modified":"2026-04-23T12:30:39","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T12:30:39","slug":"pentagon-spokesperson-christopher-sherwood-emails-on-ufos-uap-and-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/pentagon-spokesperson-christopher-sherwood-emails-on-ufos-uap-and-more\/","title":{"rendered":"Pentagon Spokesperson Christopher Sherwood Emails on UFOs, UAP, and more"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"\" data-turn-id-container=\"request-WEB:7913856c-2f40-4f65-9681-ebde2ad0a832-3\" data-is-intersecting=\"true\">\n<section class=\"text-token-text-primary w-full focus:outline-none [--shadow-height:45px] has-data-writing-block:pointer-events-none has-data-writing-block:-mt-(--shadow-height) has-data-writing-block:pt-(--shadow-height) [&amp;:has([data-writing-block])&gt;*]:pointer-events-auto R6Vx5W_threadScrollVars scroll-mb-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom,0px)+var(--thread-response-height))] scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]\" dir=\"auto\" data-turn-id=\"request-WEB:7913856c-2f40-4f65-9681-ebde2ad0a832-3\" data-testid=\"conversation-turn-8\" data-scroll-anchor=\"false\" data-turn=\"assistant\">\n<div class=\"text-base my-auto mx-auto pb-10 [--thread-content-margin:var(--thread-content-margin-xs,calc(var(--spacing)*4))] @w-sm\/main:[--thread-content-margin:var(--thread-content-margin-sm,calc(var(--spacing)*6))] @w-lg\/main:[--thread-content-margin:var(--thread-content-margin-lg,calc(var(--spacing)*16))] px-(--thread-content-margin)\">\n<div class=\"[--thread-content-max-width:40rem] @w-lg\/main:[--thread-content-max-width:48rem] mx-auto max-w-(--thread-content-max-width) flex-1 group\/turn-messages focus-visible:outline-hidden relative flex w-full min-w-0 flex-col agent-turn\">\n<div class=\"flex max-w-full flex-col gap-4 grow\">\n<div class=\"min-h-8 text-message relative flex w-full flex-col items-end gap-2 text-start break-words whitespace-normal outline-none keyboard-focused:focus-ring [.text-message+&amp;]:mt-1\" dir=\"auto\" tabindex=\"0\" data-message-author-role=\"assistant\" data-message-id=\"0dcc0c8b-d193-43cc-9889-19dac1e40fc7\" data-message-model-slug=\"gpt-5-3\" data-turn-start-message=\"true\">\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-col gap-1 empty:hidden\">\n<div class=\"markdown prose dark:prose-invert w-full wrap-break-word dark markdown-new-styling\">\n<p data-start=\"78\" data-end=\"485\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-8862\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-300x188.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"188\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-300x188.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-600x375.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-1024x640.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-150x94.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-450x281.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-1200x750.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-768x480.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-343x215.jpg 343w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-326x205.jpg 326w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-163x102.jpg 163w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-731x457.jpg 731w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-230x143.jpg 230w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon-264x165.jpg 264w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Pentagon.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>A newly released collection of Department of Defense records centers on internal email communications tied to Pentagon spokesperson Christopher Sherwood and references to Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP). The material stems from a targeted Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking insight into how UAP-related terminology and issues were discussed within the Pentagon\u2019s public affairs apparatus.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"487\" data-end=\"975\">The request specifically sought \u201ca copy of all emails, sent to and\/or from (bcc\u2019d and cc\u2019d) Pentagon spokesman Christopher Sherwood\u2026 with the following keywords\/phrases,\u201d including \u201cUnidentified Aerial Phenomena,\u201d \u201cUnidentified Aerial Phenomenon,\u201d \u201cUAP,\u201d and \u201cUAPs\u201d . The scope was narrowly defined, focusing on a single individual and a set of keywords that became increasingly prominent within Department of Defense communications in the late 2010s. Sherwood primarily responded to UAP related questions from the media, even those from The Black Vault, back around this time frame. He was later replaced in those duties by Susan Gough, for reasons unknown.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"977\" data-end=\"1262\">Sherwood served as a Pentagon spokesperson within the Department of Defense\u2019s public affairs structure. In that role, communications involving Sherwood typically relate to media inquiries, official messaging, and coordination of public statements on defense-related topics.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1264\" data-end=\"1770\">According to the Department of Defense response, a search conducted by the Office of the Assistant to the Secretary of War for Public Affairs located \u201c416 pages determined to be responsive\u201d to the request . These records were reviewed by multiple entities across the defense and intelligence community, including the<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_21281\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-21281\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-21281 size-medium\" style=\"vertical-align: middle; font-size: 14px; font-family: 'Open Sans', system-ui, sans-serif;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1516897661735-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1516897661735-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1516897661735-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1516897661735-336x336.jpg 336w, https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1516897661735.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-21281\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Christopher Sherwood<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p data-start=\"1264\" data-end=\"1770\">Defense Intelligence Agency, Office of General Counsel, and the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General .<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1772\" data-end=\"2302\">Portions of the material were withheld under several FOIA exemptions, including protections for intelligence-related information, internal deliberations, and personal privacy. Specifically, the Department cited exemptions covering \u201cinformation pertaining to\u2026 the Defense Intelligence Agency, the National Reconnaissance Office, and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency,\u201d as well as \u201cinter- and intra-agency memoranda\u2026 contain[ing]subjective evaluations, opinions and recommendations\u201d .<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2689\" data-end=\"2866\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">This overview serves as an introduction to the archive. Subsequent analysis will examine the emails in detail, including their chronology, participants, and substantive content. For now, the entire archive is below.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2689\" data-end=\"2866\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">An appeal was filed by The Black Vault to argue the extensive redactions.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2689\" data-end=\"2866\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">###<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"2689\" data-end=\"2866\">Document Archive<\/h3>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/images\/pdf.gif\" \/> <a href=\"https:\/\/documents2.theblackvault.com\/documents\/osd\/20-F-0163.pdf\">20-F-0163 Release Package<\/a> [418 Pages, 17MB]<\/p>\n<div class=\"ead-preview\"><div class=\"ead-document\" style=\"position: relative;padding-top: 90%;\"><div class=\"ead-iframe-wrapper\"><iframe src=\"\/\/docs.google.com\/viewer?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdocuments2.theblackvault.com%2Fdocuments%2Fosd%2F20-F-0163.pdf&amp;embedded=true&amp;hl=en\" title=\"Embedded Document\" class=\"ead-iframe\" style=\"width: 100%;height: 100%;border: none;position: absolute;left: 0;top: 0;visibility: hidden;\"><\/iframe><\/div>\t\t\t<div class=\"ead-document-loading\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;position:absolute;left:0;top:0;z-index:10;\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"ead-loading-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"ead-loading-main\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"ead-loading\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/plugins\/embed-any-document\/images\/loading.svg\" width=\"55\" height=\"55\" alt=\"Loader\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Loading...<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"ead-loading-foot\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"ead-loading-foot-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/plugins\/embed-any-document\/images\/EAD-logo.svg\" alt=\"EAD Logo\" width=\"36\" height=\"23\"\/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Taking too long?<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"ead-document-btn ead-reload-btn\" role=\"button\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/plugins\/embed-any-document\/images\/reload.svg\" alt=\"Reload\" width=\"12\" height=\"12\"\/> Reload document\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>|<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/documents2.theblackvault.com\/documents\/osd\/20-F-0163.pdf\" class=\"ead-document-btn\" target=\"_blank\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/plugins\/embed-any-document\/images\/open.svg\" alt=\"Open\" width=\"12\" height=\"12\"\/> Open in new tab\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div><p class=\"embed_download\"><a href=\"https:\/\/documents2.theblackvault.com\/documents\/osd\/20-F-0163.pdf\" download>Download [16.84 MB] <\/a><\/p><\/div><p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2689\" data-end=\"2866\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"z-0 flex min-h-[46px] justify-start\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"mt-3 w-full empty:hidden\">\n<div class=\"text-center\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pointer-events-none -mt-px h-px translate-y-[calc(var(--scroll-root-safe-area-inset-bottom)-14*var(--spacing))]\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A newly released collection of Department of Defense records centers on internal email communications tied to Pentagon spokesperson Christopher Sherwood and references to Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP). The material stems from a targeted Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking insight into how UAP-related terminology and issues were discussed within the Pentagon\u2019s public affairs apparatus.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21279,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","transcript_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,32],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-21278","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-the-fringe","8":"category-ufo-phenomena"},"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/2026-04-23_04-58-54.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21278","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21278"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21278\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21283,"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21278\/revisions\/21283"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21278"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21278"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theblackvault.com\/documentarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21278"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}