Pentagon Fires Stars and Stripes Leadership for Insubordination

The Pentagon has fired Max Lederer, the longtime publisher of Stars and Stripes, along with editor-in-chief Erik Slavin and reporter Lara Kortenhof for insubordination. The dismissals follow a CBS interview in which they objected to potential censorship by the U.S. military.

The publication, which receives about 65% of its funding from the Pentagon, has long prided itself on editorial independence. However, tensions have escalated under the Trump administration. Lederer cited fundamental differences in leadership philosophy and mission as reasons for his retirement. In a memo to staff, he stated that his understanding of the value and mission of Stars and Stripes differs fundamentally from the direction set by Defense Department leadership.

Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell has posted on social media about plans to modernize Stars and Stripes, refocusing its content away from what he termed 'woke distractions' and adapting it to serve a new generation of service members. The administration's efforts include ending the use of wire services like Reuters or the Associated Press, focusing instead on warfighting, weapons systems, fitness, lethality, survivability, and other military-related topics.

The outlet has faced criticism from within the Pentagon for its reporting on issues such as deteriorating housing conditions in barracks and allegations of neglect at military child care centers. The publication's coverage of the war in the Middle East and the USS Abraham Lincoln's extended deployment has also drawn attention to declining morale among service members.

Lederer's retirement follows the Pentagon's firing of Jacqueline Smith, the newspaper's ombudsman tasked with safeguarding editorial independence. The move comes seven months after the department announced plans to overhaul the newspaper to align with its current messaging. Lederer expressed concerns about the modernization efforts, particularly the transition from print to digital platforms, fearing it would limit accessibility for troops.

In a letter seen by the Associated Press, Rufus Friday, the chair of Stars and Stripes’ advisory board of publishers, wrote to congressional leaders about the arrival of a new deputy installed by the Pentagon under Lederer without his prior knowledge. This development raises concerns about further threats to the newspaper's editorial independence.

William Urban, an active-duty Navy captain and public affairs officer, has been appointed as Lederer's replacement. Urban plans to overhaul the publication by focusing on digital formats and social media, aiming to 'optimize' Stars and Stripes for the use of artificial intelligence. In his first letter to staff, Urban acknowledged the challenges ahead but urged them to join him in modernizing the newspaper.

Days after his sudden firing by the Pentagon, former editor-in-chief Erik Slavin told CBS News that 'time will tell' whether the military newspaper will remain editorially independent from the government agency it covers. The Defense Department delivered termination notices last week to Stars and Stripes Editor-in-Chief Erik Slavin, publisher Max Lederer, and Middle East reporter Lara Korte, accusing them of insubordination. The dismissals raised questions about the future of the paper, which is partly funded by U.S. taxpayers but has historically operated independently.

Slavin called the termination notice a 'real shock' and a 'very unexpected' development in an interview on CBS News' 'The Takeout with Major Garrett.' Slavin had worked at Stars and Stripes for just over two decades, serving as a reporter and bureau chief before being promoted to editor-in-chief last fall. The stated reason for his firing was his appearance in a 'CBS Sunday Morning' report on the Trump administration's push to overhaul Stars and Stripes. Slavin said he would not publish a 'perfectly accurate story' if demanded by the military, calling it a 'red line.'

Stars and Stripes was first published during the Civil War and has prided itself on its editorial independence, meaning the federal government does not dictate what it can and cannot publish. Roughly half of Stars and Stripes' $29 million annual budget comes from taxpayers, with an average readership of 1.4 million people daily.

Slavin described the paper's goal as giving service members 'the straight truth.' He noted that readers hold them accountable every day. Earlier this year, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the Defense Department would make sweeping changes to the paper, vowing to modernize its operations and refocus its content away from 'woke distractions' that syphon morale.

Shortly after the firings, Stars and Stripes published an open letter from Navy Capt. William Urban, who was tapped to serve as military deputy to the publisher. Urban wrote that his priorities were to produce 'the highest quality of editorially independent reporting,' while modernizing the paper and boosting its advertising revenue.

Korte — the Middle East reporter who was fired alongside Slavin for sitting for a 'CBS Sunday Morning' interview — said in a separate interview with CBS News on Monday that she has 'certainly been bolstered to see comments from the Stripes' leadership and from the Pentagon that the Stripes is editorially independent.'

The Pentagon has made other changes to how the military can be covered. Last year, reporters who cover the Pentagon were told they would need to sign on to a host of rules, including a restriction on 'soliciting' sensitive information from military personnel. CBS News and many other media outlets declined to sign the policy, leading dozens of reporters to turn in their press credentials.

A judge struck down many of the new rules earlier this year, and the military replaced them with a requirement that all journalists be escorted while inside the Pentagon. Slavin told CBS News that there used to be a time where in the Pentagon, it was very simple for military officials to talk with journalists very frankly.

Three staff members from the Stars and Stripes military newspaper have filed a lawsuit against the United States Department of Defense, alleging that their recent firing was part of an effort to erode the paper’s independence. In Thursday’s court filings, the newspaper’s publisher Max Lederer, editor-in-chief Erik Slavin and Middle East reporter Lara Korte argued that their First Amendment rights to free speech had been infringed.

The Stars and Stripes has long billed itself as an independent source for military news, though it receives government funding for its operations. But last week, the three journalists received notices of termination from the Pentagon that reportedly accused them of insubordination. That has raised questions about the Defense Department’s longtime commitment to respecting the newspaper’s editorial independence.

Thursday’s complaint accuses the department and several of its leaders, including Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, of engaging in “extraordinary censorship efforts”. “Defendants are attempting to fire Plaintiffs for speaking up as private citizens in support of the press’s freedom to cover military operations,” the lawsuit says. “This [legal] action seeks to prevent the blatant violation of the First Amendment rights of these journalists.”

The case is set to be heard in a district court in Washington, DC. Korte explained the journalists’ reason for filing the lawsuit in a social media post. “Everyone deserves the right to a free and independent press, especially our service members,” she wrote. “This lawsuit is about safeguarding the mission of Stars and Stripes journalists so they can continue to do their jobs without fear or retaliation.”

The legal battle is the latest instance under President Donald Trump of the executive branch being sued for allegedly penalising reporters and media personalities who do not comply with the administration’s viewpoints. The lawsuit points to a July interview on CBS Sunday Morning as the “genesis” of the friction between the Stars and Stripes journalists and the Trump administration.

Both Korte and Slavin were featured in the segment. A reporter for the morning news show asked them about their work and recent statements from the Pentagon indicating it would seek to redirect the newspaper’s focus. “You have a sign on your desk: Pick your battles,” CBS News reporter David Martin asked Slavin. “Which foxholes are you willing to die in?”

“We need to be able to provide independent news to service members,” Slavin responded. “If we can’t do that, if we were turned into something other than that, if we were public relations, that’s the foxhole.” The CBS interview followed a statement in January, in which Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said his department would return Stars and Stripes “to its original mission: reporting for our warfighters”.

“We will modernize its operations, refocus its content away from woke distractions that syphon morale, and adapt it to serve a new generation of service members,” Parnell wrote. “It will focus on warfighting, weapons systems, fitness, lethality, survivability, and ALL THINGS MILITARY.” But critics have denounced the modernisation initiative as a smokescreen through which the Pentagon is seeking to reshape the Stars and Stripes’ coverage.

The lawsuit points to the newspaper’s key role in breaking coverage about deteriorating conditions on board the USS Abraham Lincoln, an aircraft carrier that has been on deployment, without a port stop, since November of last year. The Stars and Stripes was one of the first media outlets to cover the supply shortages on the ship, as well as the mental health struggles of the sailors working through the record-long deployment.

But Trump and Hegseth have both denied reports of poor living conditions on the USS Lincoln, calling such news “fake”. The lawsuit suggests the recent firings may be retaliation for the Stars and Stripes reporting on the subject. A day after one of its articles was published, the lawsuit alleges that the Defense Department contacted Lederer, the publisher, about firing Korte and Slavin. The department allegedly pointed to the CBS interview from weeks earlier as justification.

Lederer did not follow through with the order to deliver the termination notices. Instead, he announced his intention to retire in September. His memo to the Stars and Stripes staff suggested he had disagreements with the “direction the leadership of the Department of Defense has for the organization”. But on August 21, the Department of Defense had issued termination notices to all three employees, including Lederer.

In April, the newspaper’s ombudsman, Jacqueline Smith, was also fired. Her role, in part, was charged with safeguarding the independence of the Stars and Stripes, a newspaper with a storied history, stretching back to the US Civil War. Korte has worked at the paper since 2024. Her colleagues Slavin and Lederer have been with the Stars and Stripes for 21 and 25 years, respectively.

“Defense officials and military commanders have long made clear that Stripes would not be subject to interference by military officials,” the lawsuit says. “Stripes’ historical editorial independence is critical to its core mission of gathering and providing unbiased, credible journalism to the US military community.”