Three journalists who worked for Stars and Stripes, a US government-funded news outlet, have sued the Department of Defense in federal court, alleging their firings were illegal and violated their first amendment rights. The three journalists - Max Lederer, Erik Slavin, and Lara Korte - claim they were fired in retaliation for speaking out about potential censorship by the military and publishing a report on deteriorating conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. According to the complaint, no action was taken against the journalists after an interview with CBS News where they discussed potential censorship, but it was only after publication of the report on August 11 that Lederer was ordered to fire Slavin and Korte. The suit claims Lederer's refusal to comply led to his own dismissal from Stars and Stripes in September.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-28,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Pentagon officials are considering firing Max Lederer, the longtime publisher of Stars and Stripes, a military news outlet that receives 65% of its funding from the Defense Department. Lederer announced his decision to retire on September 30, citing fundamental differences with the Trump administration. He has been publisher for 19 years and has prided himself on the outlet's editorial independence. However, Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell has spoken about "bringing Stars and Stripes into the 21st century," implying a desire to shift its focus and tone. This comes after William Urban, the new military deputy to the publisher of Stars and Stripes, explained in an open letter that he intends to modernize the paper and build its readership, which he claimed was fewer than 30,000 digital subscribers and a print circulation of less than 10,000. The changes have led to allegations that the Pentagon is trying to silence journalists who are critical of its policies. Three journalists from Stars and Stripes - including Lederer, Editor-in-Chief Erik Slavin, and Middle East correspondent Lara Korte - have sued the Department of Defense in federal court, alleging their dismissals were illegal and violated their first amendment rights to free speech.
Written for “Journalists vs Pentagon Firing Policy” on 2026-08-31,
grounded in this article and the 2 other(s) covering the same event.
Three journalists who were fired by the Pentagon from a US government-funded news outlet sued the Department of Defense in federal court on Thursday, arguing their dismissals were illegal and violated their first amendment rights to free speech.
asserted
dismissals → fire → speech
The three journalists were all employees of Stars and Stripes, which their court filing calls “the U.S. military’s independent news source since the Civil War with a long history of editorial independence, free from news management or censorship by military command”.
asserted
filing → call → command
Max Lederer, the news outlet’s former publisher Max Lederer, Erik Slavin, the editor-in-chief, and Lara Korte, Middle East correspondent, allege the defense department and Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, “are attempting to fire Plaintiffs for speaking up as private citizens in support of the press’s freedom to cover military operations, its need to reach all servicepersons, and in retaliation for their publication of a news report on deteriorating conditions aboard the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln during its extended tour of duty in the Mid-East”.
asserted
department → allege → East
Slavin and Korte said they were dismissed for supposed “insubordination” during an interview with CBS News in which they objected to potential censorship by the US military.
asserted
they → say → military
According to the complaint, no one at the Pentagon took “immediate action” after the interview aired on 5 July.
uncertain
interview → accord → July
“After all, the anodyne statements endorsing Stripes’ editorial independence were entirely consistent with DoD’s own longstanding insistence on Stripes’ independence,” reads the complaint.
asserted
complaint → endorse → independence
The journalists allege that “the spark that moved [the Pentagon] to act” was an 11 August news report about the conditions on the troubled USS Abraham Lincoln, which had been supporting US military operations in the middle east for nearly nine months.
asserted
which → allege → months
“The article broke a major story about deteriorating conditions aboard the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln,” the complaint says.
asserted
complaint → break → Lincoln
“It reported that the aircraft carrier’s 5,000 Sailors have endured food and water shortages, disrupted mail service, long workdays, and little time off for months on end, and that the long deployment and physical hardships were impacting Sailors’ physical and mental health”.
asserted
deployment → report → health
The day after that article was published by Stars and Stripes, the suit contends, Lederer was ordered to fire Slavin and Korte – five and a half weeks after the CBS News interview.
asserted
Lederer → publish → interview
Lederer ultimately declined to comply with the order.
asserted
Lederer → decline → order
“Lederer did not deliver the notices,” the suit explains.
asserted
suit → deliver → notices
“Instead, he decided then and there to retire, and informed the Stripes’ staff via email.
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he → decide → email
Mr. Lederer took this step because he did not want to be part of Defendants’ scheme to illegally punish Mr. Slavin and Ms. Korte for exercising their First Amendment rights.”
asserted
he → take → rights
Lederer was dismissed shortly after announcing his impending retirement, effective at the end of September.
asserted
Lederer → dismiss → September
He said the Pentagon had installed a new deputy publisher, an active duty service member, under him at the newspaper without his prior knowledge.
asserted
Pentagon → say → knowledge
“Stripes’ historical editorial independence is critical to its core mission of gathering and providing unbiased, credible journalism to the U.S. military community, particularly servicemembers and their families stationed overseas,” the suit also says.
asserted
suit → gather → community
The Pentagon did not immediately return a request for comment on Thursday’s lawsuit.
asserted
Pentagon → return → lawsuit
