In his first week as President, Donald Trump issued an order that federal agencies curb information released to the public through news releases, guidance, and social media. Several people purporting to be agency employees, including those from the National Park Service, NASA, and the Environmental Protection Agency, started “Alternative” social media accounts to continue to disseminate information anonymously. Other agencies have not grabbed the headlines that these “rogue” agencies have, but have expressed quiet concern at the information restrictions. Part of this concern stems from confusion over the scope of the restrictions. New administrations will often temporarily halt agency work, which may include careful control of communications. The administration also issued an order to freeze all regulatory work. At least one Health and Human Services (HHS) official said that he believed the communications restriction applied only to communications regarding proposed or pending regulations, and not the communications blackout that others have interpreted the order to be.
