Pentagon moves to fire publisher and editor of Stars and Stripes
Washington — The Pentagon on Friday moved to fire the publisher and the editor in chief of Stars and Stripes, the U.S. military news outlet partly funded by American taxpayers, as well as a reporter who covers the Middle East, according to people familiar with the matter.
The separation notices, delivered Friday, gave Publisher Max Lederer and Editor-in-Chief Erik Slavin five days to appeal their dismissals. Reporter Lara Korte also said she received notice that she was being fired.
The cause cited was insubordination, Slavin and Korte said.
In a statement to CBS News, Slavin said he will respond through the required process.
"According to the notice, I am being fired for stating in a CBS interview that censorship of news for service members would constitute a red line. The Pentagon's public affairs office has charged me with insubordination," Slavin said. "I stand by the principle that Stars and Stripes must remain editorially independent, as required by law and by the department's own policies."
Slavin spoke publicly about disagreements with Pentagon leaders in an interview with "CBS Sunday Morning" that aired in July. In that piece, Slavin was asked if he had any red lines he would not cross. He replied, "'Don't run a perfectly accurate story, run this instead. Here it is, written by the Pentagon.' That would be a red line."
In a statement, Korte called the firings "a shame for the institution and service members, who swore to defend the Constitution and deserve the right to a free and independent press."
"I'm proud of the work my colleagues and I do at Stars and Stripes, especially the last six months covering the protracted conflict in Iran. Military families and service members have trusted us to share their experience with the world and I don't take that lightly," she said.
Korte was also featured in the July "Sunday Morning" story, in which she said: "I'm working for Stars and Stripes. Not for the Pentagon, not for any administration, not for any policymaker. I'm here to cover the military community."
A Defense Department spokesman declined to comment when contacted on Friday afternoon by CBS News, which first reported the firings of Slavin and Lederer.
Lederer has served as the outlet's publisher for 19 years and told colleagues this week that he would retire on Sept. 30, citing fundamental differences with the Trump administration.
CBS News reported on Wednesday that Pentagon officials had discussed dismissing Lederer before his scheduled retirement.
In a note to staff earlier this week that was obtained by CBS News, Lederer wrote: "It has become clear that my philosophy of leadership, and my understanding of the value and mission of Stars and Stripes, differ in fundamental ways from the direction the leadership of the Department of Defense has for the organization."
But he added he would "do everything I can to make sure the transition is smooth for each of you" before his retirement.
Stars and Stripes has been a source of critical information for members of the military and their families for decades, and has prided itself on editorial independence.
Recently, Stars and Stripes, along with the Military Times, reported on challenging conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, writing that family members of service members aboard the aircraft carrier were concerned about their loved ones' mental health and risk of self-harm. Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and President Trump downplayed or denied those reports, but the ship left the Middle East this week to begin the journey home to the U.S. after a nine-month deployment.
Roughly half of Stars and Stripes' $29 million annual budget comes from taxpayers, a person familiar with the newspaper's operations said. Readership has declined since its peaks during the Vietnam War, the Cold War and World War II, according to two U.S. officials, but an average of 1.4 million people see Stars and Stripes each day. Print editions overseas also reach service members in remote locations where internet access is spotty and unreliable.
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell has talked about "bringing Stars and Stripes into the 21st century" and efforts to "refocus its content away from woke distractions that syphon morale, and adapt it to serve a new generation of service members."
