Davis Winkie - Reporter and Senior Fellow
Davis Winkie
Reporter and Senior Fellow
Latest
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Iran war heats up while US weapon stocks remain depleted, risking military’s ability to fight future warsJul 12, 2026Key US weapons stockpiles remain significantly depleted and will come under even more intense pressure if strikes against Iran continue at the current rate, as President Donald Trump reiterated Friday that the ceasefire in the conflict is “over.” -
US Air Force requested to bring back mandatory flu shots weeks before basic training outbreakJun 24, 2026A worsening flu outbreak among recruits attending basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, began earlier this month while an Air Force request to reinstate a mandatory flu shot requirement axed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wound its way through the Pentagon bureaucracy, according to a defense official and a source familiar with the situation. -
Senior US General in Europe set to retire amid Hegseth’s review of US support for NATO alliesJun 24, 2026A highly respected four-star Army general is stepping down from his post commanding soldiers in Europe and is slated to retire as he has thus far not been nominated for a new job consistent with his rank by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, multiple sources told CNN. -
8 crew members killed in B-52 bomber crash at California’s Edwards Air Force BaseJun 17, 2026A mammoth military plane on a routine test mission crashed shortly after takeoff Monday in Southern California, killing all eight crew members on board and leaving charred wreckage so mangled it was barely recognizable. -
Iran’s nuclear stockpile — a key part of negotiations to end the war and a focus of Trump’s — explainedJun 14, 2026What happens to Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, including the 970 pounds that it has highly concentrated to near-weapons grade, is one of the primary sticking points as the US and Iran have trudged through weeks of negotiations to potentially end the Iran war. -
Exclusive: Iran sealed uranium cache and placed mines amid fears of US operation to seize materialJun 13, 2026In recent weeks, Iran has dramatically escalated efforts to seal off its cache of near bomb-grade uranium, deliberately collapsing tunnels and booby-trapping entrances with explosive mines, according to five sources familiar with US intelligence. -
Pentagon locked down and partially evacuated due to a false alarm by hazardous materials sensor, sources sayJun 11, 2026The Pentagon was locked down and partially evacuated on Thursday due to a false alarm by a hazardous materials sensor, two sources familiar told CNN. -
Restrictions on prediction market bets by US troops part of draft defense billJun 2, 2026Members of the US military may soon be barred from using prediction markets to bet on global events if a draft defense policy bill passes Congress and becomes law. The proposal comes after a high-profile case where a US special forces soldier is accused of using classified information to place bets tied to the capture of Nicolás Maduro. -
Iran war spending drains US military budgets, triggering cancelled trainings, delayed maintenanceMay 27, 2026The Pentagon is feeling the financial squeeze and is struggling in some cases to carry out routine training and maintenance amid its ongoing operations against Iran, with uniformed military leaders pressing Congress to support additional funding.
About
Davis Winkie is a Reporter and Senior Fellow covering national security and nuclear threats for CNN.
Winkie rejoined the network in the Spring of 2026 and his reporting career spans nuclear weapons policy, military operations, veterans’ issues, and breaking international security developments. He was a Livingston Award finalist in 2023 for his coverage of the military’s deployment to the southern border, and he received the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation Award in 2025 for his investigation into suicides within the Army’s tank community.
Before joining CNN, Winkie covered the White House, nuclear threats, and national security for USA Today, reporting from both Atlanta and Washington, D.C.
Prior to that, he served as the senior Army reporter for Military Times, where he led editorial partnerships with The Texas Tribune and ProPublica. His investigations there drove changes in federal law, internal military reforms, and the removal of senior leaders. Winkie also previously worked as a researcher for CNN’s fact‑checking division, The Row, verifying attribution and accuracy for television scripts, digital features, and longform projects.
Winkie began his career as a historian, serving as a project archivist for the Atlanta History Center’s oral history collections and coordinating a Smithsonian traveling exhibit across rural Georgia as a Georgia Humanities fellow. A veteran of the Army National Guard and a current part‑time officer in the Air National Guard, he received the Theodore Roosevelt Leadership Award for Company Grade Officers from the National Guard Association of the United States in 2021.
Throughout his career, Winkie has garnered numerous journalism accolades in addition to his Livingston and Ford recognition. He received recognition from the Military Reporters and Editors in four consecutive annual contests, culminating by winning the group’s 2025 James Crawley Award for best print entry. Winkie also has won or shared awards from the Atlanta Press Club, the Society of Professional Journalists (national and regional), the Institute for Non-Profit News, the Texas Headliners Foundation, and Military Veterans in Journalism for his reporting and photography.
Winkie earned an undergraduate degree with majors in European history and classics from Vanderbilt University, where he also played football. He holds a master’s degree in military history from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Winkie also completed a postgraduate certificate in public history at the University of West Georgia.
Winkie is based in Atlanta, Georgia. His work at CNN is supported by a partnership between the Outrider Foundation and Journalism Funding Partners (JFP). CNN retains full editorial control of all reporting.
