Washington DC - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has reportedly been enlisting a number of influencers to carry out a culture war for him online.

According to The Bulwark, several influencers who are reliable allies for Hegseth – including "DataRepublican" Jennica Pounds and shipping analyst John Konrad – were recently exposed as "special government employees" of the Pentagon, which the department confirmed but refused to give details about.

Adam D'Ortona, another influencer who goes by InfantryDot, has frequently spent time at the Pentagon, but is not listed as an employee.

Reporting from The Washington Post on Monday found that Hegseth has also prioritized veterans-turned-influencers, some of whom were hired for civilian roles that could lead to changes in policy.

Donald Trump Google Maps renames Lake Ontario to "Lake America" as Ontario leader claps back: "It's absolutely backwards!"

Pentagon records revealed that Rob Maness, a retired Air Force colonel, and Kurt Schlichter, a retired Army colonel, were recently given official government email addresses and are assigned to the office of Anthony Tata, the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness.

Both have notably large social media followings, with Maness having over 135,000 followers on X and Schlichter having nearly 620,000.

Influencer Thomas Anderson, who operates under the name Cynical Publius, was assigned to Tata's office earlier this year, but no longer remains so for unknown reasons.

Since President Donald Trump returned to office and tapped Hegseth for the role, the secretary has aggressively fought to limit reporting by the traditional Pentagon press corps – which Konrad and Pounds are a part of – and sought to weed out "leakers" who have shared insight with outside media outlets.

He has also faced heavy criticism for seemingly surrounding himself with "yes men," as he has continued to fire top generals who do not align with Trump's MAGA agenda and has recently installed allies on the Defense Policy Board after firing its original members.

Though the influencers have argued there is nothing wrong with the arrangements, Hegseth's alleged moves raise ethics concerns and could violate Hatch Act rules against using public money for political purposes.