Stars and Stripes journalists sue US Defense Dept over firings

Stars and Stripes, a venerable US military newspaper with a lineage stretching back to the Civil War era, has found itself embroiled in a legal dispute with the Department of Defense. The newspaper, which relies on partial funding from the Pentagon, has long upheld the principles of editorial independence, though this autonomy has recently been called into question.

Three senior Stars and Stripes personnel - editor-in-chief Erik Slavin, publisher Max Lederer, and reporter Lara Korte - have filed a lawsuit against the Defense Department, alleging that they were unjustly terminated for exercising their First Amendment rights. Their complaint, obtained by AFP, asserts that the Pentagon retaliated against them for a report published on August 11, which detailed deteriorating conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln.

This story reportedly spurred fresh criticism of then-President Donald Trump's administration's handling of the conflict with Iran.

The lawsuit contends that on August 12, the Defense Department instructed Lederer to dismiss Slavin and Korte, accusing them of insubordination for expressing their views on the newspaper's editorial independence in a previous interview with CBS. This disciplinary action culminated in their dismissal on August 21. The Stars and Stripes lawsuit maintains that these actions constitute a clear violation of the journalists' constitutional freedoms, and seeks their immediate reinstatement.

The legal challenge comes amid broader concerns about the tensions between the media and the US Department of Defense. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, the current head of the Pentagon, has been vocal in his criticism of the press since assuming his role in 2025. The lawsuit asserts that the Department has been attempting to influence the newspaper's coverage, allegedly steering it away from what it calls "woke distractions". The Defense Department has yet to comment on the pending legal action.