Breaking Defense is pleased to announce that Ashley Roque is joining Breaking Defense as our Senior Reporter, Land Warfare. In this key role for Breaking Defense, Ashley will be responsible for covering the US Army and developments that affect land warfare globally.
Ashley comes to Breaking Defense with two decades of experience in national security reporting and great expertise in covering the US Army. She’s reported on defense, US politics, and foreign policy for publications both inside and outside of the United States, including Janes, Roll Call, Inside Defense and Shephard Media. Most recently, Ashley spent five years as a senior reporter at Janes, primarily focused on the US Army. Ashley holds a BA in English with a minor in journalism from Florida State University, and a master’s degree in conflict transformation from the University of Basel, Switzerland.
In a separate development, Breaking Defense welcomes back Sydney Freedberg as Contributing Editor, a wide-ranging role that includes a focus on cyber capabilities, robotics and artificial intelligence. A mainstay at Breaking Defense for over a decade, Sydney will now aim his formidable intellect and experience to this topic and will augment the defense networks and emerging technology beat coverage provided by Jaspreet Gill.
Roque begins officially on Dec. 5, while Freedberg begins on Jan. 1.
“I’ve known Ashley for years and have deep respect for her both as a reporter and as a person, so I’m thrilled to be able to finally work with her directly. She brings a deep knowledge of all things land warfare that will serve us well” said Aaron Mehta, editor-in-chief at Breaking Defense. “I’m also thrilled to welcome Sydney back to the team and look forward to him tackling the big picture issues around the next generation of defense technologies.”
“With these developments, Breaking Defense continues to invest and grow its highly experienced staff, the best team in defense and national security media,” said David Smith, publisher and managing director of Breaking Defense. “I’m delighted to welcome a reporter of the experience and quality of Ashley to our team and look forward to the dynamic and expert reporting she’ll bring to cover the Army. I’m also happy to welcome back Sydney after extended leave. His new focus on cyber, AI and robotics adds a critical new point of reporting and analysis for Breaking Defense on growing areas of importance for militaries around the world.”