Pentagon sacks military newspaper chiefs over editorial freedom row

The Pentagon has fired the editor-in-chief, publisher, and a reporter of the military newspaper Stars and Stripes. According to Stars and Stripes Editor-in-Chief Erik Slavin, he was let go for stating in a CBS interview that hypothetical censorship of news for service members would constitute a personal red line.

Slavin, Publisher Max Lederer, and Middle East reporter Lara Korte received notices of separation for insubordination. Lederer had announced his intention to retire from his position in September, stating that the Pentagon had a new vision for the newspaper that differed from his own.

Stars and Stripes, which has been publishing since World War II, is partially funded by the Defense Department but has remained editorially independent. The firings come after the Pentagon installed Navy Captain William Urban as the outlet's deputy editor, without Lederer's prior knowledge.

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