Pentagon Fires Stars and Stripes Leaders Amid Censorship Row

By Staff, Agencies

The Pentagon has fired senior figures at Stars and Stripes, the US military’s government-funded newspaper, escalating a months-long dispute over editorial independence as the publication reports on mounting strains within the armed forces during the war on Iran.

On Friday, editor-in-chief Erik Slavin and publisher Max Lederer received termination notices, while Middle East correspondent Lara Korte was also dismissed, according to The New York Times.

The move follows growing tensions between the Department of War and the newspaper over efforts to exert greater control over its coverage.

It came around 10 days after Stars and Stripes reported on difficult conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, whose deployment was extended to nine months amid Washington’s prolonged war on Iran, including concerns raised by sailors and families over mental health and shortages.

Although no evidence directly links the carrier report to the dismissals, their timing has intensified concerns over Pentagon interference in a publication historically granted substantial editorial independence.

Slavin said his termination notice cited insubordination and an unauthorized media appearance. He and Korte had appeared in a July CBS News report examining allegations of Pentagon interference.

Slavin said he was fired after stating that censorship of news for service members would constitute a red line, adding that he stood by the principle that Stars and Stripes must remain editorially independent under law and Pentagon policy.

Meanwhile, Lederer had announced plans to retire earlier this week, citing disagreements with Pentagon leadership over the newspaper’s future. The Department of War declined to comment.

Navy Capt. William Urban, recently appointed military deputy to the publisher, said one of his priorities would be ensuring “the highest quality of editorially independent reporting” at Stars and Stripes. Urban previously served as a senior Pentagon spokesman.

The dismissals follow a series of measures that have raised further concerns over growing Pentagon control.

Federal regulations and War Department policies had for decades required the newspaper to provide a free flow of news and information without censorship, but the Pentagon rescinded that regulation in January.

Pentagon chief spokesman Sean Parnell later called on the newspaper to move away from what he described as “woke distractions.”

In March, the Department of War barred Stars and Stripes from publishing comics and reprinting Associated Press material, while requiring its reporting to remain “consistent with good order and discipline of the military.”

Critics warned that such language could provide broad grounds for restricting coverage deemed unfavorable to senior officials, particularly amid military regulations addressing “disloyal statements” and “contemptuous words” toward senior officials.

The pressure also reached the newspaper’s internal oversight. In April, the Pentagon dismissed Jacqueline Smith, Stars and Stripes’ editorial watchdog, after she publicly criticized Department of War interference.

Congress created the position in 1991 to safeguard the newspaper’s independence, with the watchdog reporting directly to lawmakers.

Smith has since sued the Department of War, alleging that her dismissal violated her First Amendment rights.