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Washington DC: The Department of Defence has fired the editor-in-chief and publisher of Stars and Stripes, a historic newspaper that has covered the US military since the Civil War.
Editor-in-chief Erik Slavin and publisher Max Lederer were issued termination notices for insubordination following a CBS interview regarding disagreements with defence officials. Reporter Lara Korte was also sacked after asserting her editorial independence from the Pentagon.
The dismissals came days after the editorially independent, government-funded paper reported on grim conditions for crewmembers aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. That coverage provoked fresh criticism of President Donald Trump's war against Iran.
The terminations reflect broader efforts by defence leadership to increase oversight and steer coverage away from what officials termed ‘woke distractions’.
Lederer had announced his retirement days earlier due to fundamental policy differences with the Pentagon.
The move follows the installation of an active-duty Navy captain as military deputy to the publisher, raising concerns among lawmakers regarding the paper's independence.
