Pentagon reshapes Stars and Stripes, editors warn

Stars and Stripes, the Pentagon’s independent newspaper for service members, has become the center of a widening fight over editorial freedom. From a Pentagon spokesman’s vow to “modernize” the paper to new operational restrictions and a lawsuit over First Ame

On a day when other headlines were dominated by earthquakes in Venezuela and Supreme Court decisions on immigration, Erik Slavin put out a front page like no other.

Stars and Stripes ran stories aimed squarely at the American military—new tactics involving drones, and service members and families facing food insecurity. Slavin said the decision was simple: “We want to go with something that we know will directly interest our readers right away.”

The paper is part of the Department of Defense, and its reporters are Pentagon employees. Yet it has long presented itself as editorially independent from the top brass.

“We’re trying to provide independent news for the military community,” Slavin said.

An average of 1.4 million people see Stars and Stripes each day—mostly online. It still publishes a print version overseas for service members in remote locations where internet access can be unreliable.

The paper’s identity is rooted deep in American military history. It was first published during the Civil War, then revived in World War I under General John “Black Jack” Pershing, commander of American troops in Europe.

Catherine Giordano, the archivist of Stars and Stripes, said Pershing’s message was direct: the paper “should speak the thoughts of the New American Army and American people from whom the Army has been drawn.” The paper was framed as the troops’ own—“It is your paper. Good luck to it.”

Stars and Stripes has been published continuously since World War II and has been heralded as representing “the free thought and free expression of a free people.”

But in January, chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell posted on X that the Pentagon was moving Stars and Stripes into a new era—“We are bringing Stars & Stripes into the 21st century. We will modernize its operations, refocus its content away from woke distractions that syphon morale…”

Slavin was asked what he believed “woke distractions” meant. He replied: “I really don’t know what they were referring to, because they didn’t explain it.”

The issue has bled into day-to-day newsroom decisions. In June, Stars and Stripes published a story about upcoming European concerts by the rapper Bad Bunny. The Super Bowl halftime show featuring Bad Bunny had been panned by President Trump as “one of the worst ever.”

Lara Korte, the reporter who wrote the story, covers the Middle East for Stars and Stripes. Asked how the entertainment item fit a military newspaper, Korte said she works for people living far from home.

“We have a lot of people who are newly stationed here overseas. They want to find interesting trips to take. They want to have fun.

“I’m working for Stars and Stripes,” she added. “not for the Pentagon, not for any administration, not for any policymaker. I’m here to cover the military community.”

Stars and Stripes Pentagon newspaper editorial independence First Amendment lawsuit Erik Slavin Sean Parnell Lara Korte Jacqueline Smith Bill Mauldin Pentagon memo food insecurity drones