Approved for public release; distribution in unlimited. / A noticeable civil-military gap has emerged in American society where the public does not fully understand the mission of the military, and the military does not understand the expectations and demands by the public in a liberal democracy. Maintaining a good rapport with the media and not fostering a civil-military gap will allow the public to embrace 'good news' stories that are introduced by the military as well as accept the times when a negative story breaks the news. Cooperating with the media by allowing appropriate access to the military is vital to effective information operations. This research identifies instances of failure in military-media relationships by reviewing the historical relationship between the media and military in wartime as well as two examples in the last 15 years in which the Navy has mishandled newsworthy events-the 1989 explosion aboard the USS IOWA and the 2001 collision between the submarine, USS GREENEVILLE and the Japanese fishing trawler, Ehime Maru. The purpose of this project is to determine and ultimately to mitigate military bias against the media. / Lieutenant, United States Navy