Pentagon fires leadership of military newspaper Stars and Stripes over alleged insubordination

The US Department of Defense has dismissed several leading staff members of Stars and Stripes, a partly government-funded newspaper covering military affairs, accusing them of insubordination. The newspaper reported the dismissals on August 21.

Those who lost their positions include editor-in-chief Eric Slavin, longtime publisher Max Lederer, who had been due to retire soon, and Middle East correspondent Lara Korte.

Criticism over censorship

According to the newsroom, the leading staff lost their posts due to overly critical coverage of events, including in the Middle East. Slavin said he was dismissed for "insubordination" after telling CBS in an interview that hypothetical censorship of news for service members would be a red line. In a statement published on Friday, he stressed that he continues to insist on the principle that Stars and Stripes must remain editorially independent, as required by law and the department's own rules.

Korte said her dismissal resulted from her independent reporting and critical remarks made on CBS. Writing on the platform X the same day, she said the Department of Defense was firing her for insubordination after she told a CBS reporter that she works for Stars and Stripes — not for the Pentagon, any government, or politicians. She called the situation a disgrace both for the department itself and for service members who swore to defend the Constitution and deserve a free and independent press.

Link to report on aircraft carrier

Slavin, Lederer and Korte received their dismissal notices a few days after the outlet published a report on living conditions for the crew of the USS Abraham Lincoln, which had spent nine months deployed in the Middle East. The extended deployment and onboard conditions raised concerns among veterans and military health experts. The Pentagon has not commented on the dismissals at the Stars and Stripes newsroom.