The three Stars and Stripes staffers who were fired last week over alleged insubordination have filed a lawsuit against the Pentagon over their terminations, alleging they are facing \"imminent retaliation and termination in violation of theirFirst Amendmentand statutory rights.\"

\"Defendants 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,\" the lawsuit filed Thursday stated. \"This action seeks to prevent the blatant violation of the First Amendment rights of these journalists and challenges the U.S. Department of Defense’s extraordinary censorship efforts in violation of both the First Amendment and DoD regulations and policies.\"

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court inWashington, D.C., was brought by ousted Stars and Stripes editor-in-chief Erik Slavin, longtime publisher Max Lederer and Middle East reporter Lara Korte.

PENTAGON FIRES LONGTIME PUBLISHER, EDITOR, REPORTER FROM MILITARY NEWSPAPER STARS AND STRIPES

The firings stem from Slavin and Korte's unauthorized participation in a \"CBS Sunday Morning\"segmentthat aired last month about the Pentagon's efforts to overhaul the paper and Lederer's refusal to fire them at the direction of Pentagon leadership.

According to the lawsuit, the trio allege Pentagon leadership \"understood these interview statements expressed personal opinions, and therefore took no immediate action, despite their displeasure\" and that it wasn't until Stars and Stripes published its report on the alleged strife aboard the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln that the Pentagon's stance had shifted.

The lawsuit notes thatPentagon leadershipdemanded Lederer to fire Slavin and Korte just one day after the report was published.

PENTAGON OFFICIALS MULLING THE FIRING OF MILITARY NEWSPAPER STARS AND STRIPES PUBLISHER

Listed as the defendants in the lawsuit are The Pentagon, Secretary of WarPete Hegseth, chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell and his principal deputy assistant Andrew Brey.

\"Our goal is to protect the rights of service members and their families to a free and independent press,\" Slavin, Lederer and Korte said in a statement toFox News Digital. \"Stars and Stripes has served them for generations, and that independence is essential to keeping military communities fully and accurately informed.\"

\"This lawsuit is about safeguarding that mission and ensuring our civilian and military journalists can do their jobs without retaliation,\" they added.

PENTAGON VOWS TO REFORM MILITARY NEWSPAPER STARS AND STRIPES, REMOVE 'WOKE DISTRACTIONS'

A Pentagon spokesman declined to comment.

The Pentagon kicked off 2026 by announcing its overhaul of the long-running newspaper.

\"The Department of War is returning Stars & Stripes to its original mission: reporting for our warfighters,\" Parnellposted on Xin January. \"We are bringing Stars & Stripes into the 21st century. We will modernize its operations, refocus its content away from woke distractions that syphon morale, and adapt it to serve a new generation of service members.

\"Stars & Stripes will be custom tailored to our warfighters. It will focus on warfighting, weapons systems, fitness, lethality, survivability, and ALL THINGS MILITARY,\" the statement continued. \"No more repurposed DC gossip columns; no more Associated Press reprints. Stars & Stripes has a proud legacy of reporting news that’s important to our service members. The Department of War is committed to ensuring the outlet continues to reflect that proud legacy.\"

The Pentagon previously fired the Stars and Stripes ombudsman in April after being an outspoken critic of the Trump administration's oversight of the paper.

",{"_278":236,"_279":316,"_280":317},"9ee1ae9c-205d-4fdf-b362-9706d452fd66",{"_27":316,"_40":318,"_283":319,"_42":320,"_248":321,"_286":321,"_29":287,"_288":322,"_290":323,"_241":39,"_80":-5,"_82":121,"_235":324,"_278":236,"_313":-5},"Stars and Stripes publisher, editor and reporter sue Pentagon to challenge their firings","Three staff members of Stars and Stripes are suing the Pentagon following their recent firings. They allege that the Trump administration violated their First Amendment free speech rights. The lawsuit challenges the government's interference in their work.","Three staff members from the Stars and Stripes military news outlet are suing to challenge their recent firings by the Pentagon, accusing the Trump administration of violating their First Amendment free speech rights to speak out against government interference in their work.","https://twt-thumbs.washtimes.com/media/image/2026/08/19/Media_Pentagon_Stars_and_Stripes_2_594_s1440x960.jpg?f72536d07237fdd262042ae8f5e6e6de3b865f3c","2026-08-27T21:43:35","https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/aug/27/stars-stripes-publisher-max-lederer-editor-erik-slavin-reporter-lara/",{"_27":325,"_294":326,"_137":296,"_80":327,"_308":334,"_309":335,"_311":336},"b8e64fe56ef3efe085f32107062e88b4a004bca311dd3f0f254a269682dd1980","65834c9f4d198a89c43e1d82e33e08e9d4a8a6562682e86c552eb266fd5b9e7e316a2d25f6b74a9efd0582ae6f9fe1cdadb30b01ba404c59160ff7816293c613",[328,329,330,332,333],[241,318],[44,321],[301,331,39,303],"30023:df280c155aaf9ef6d87135ea08453842ba3911d3054bbb9dc8321dcc530e9569:9ee1ae9c-205d-4fdf-b362-9706d452fd66",[305,39],[140,334,39],"df280c155aaf9ef6d87135ea08453842ba3911d3054bbb9dc8321dcc530e9569","Stars and Stripes publisher, editor and reporter sue Pentagon to challenge their firings\nThree staff members from the Stars and Stripes military news outlet are suing to challenge their recent firings by the Pentagon, accusing the Trump administration of violating their First Amendment free speech rights to speak out against government interference in their work.\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzphegps244tu77mv8zd02ppznss468ygaxp2thwwusvsae3fsa9tfqqjrjet9x9sk2wtr95erqdty956xverx943rxd3j95unwvpkvs6r2vnxvsmrvcjztt7 ",1787867015,{"_278":236,"_279":338,"_280":339},"de474884-ed27-47e2-a2e9-5a312609e9d2",{"_27":338,"_40":340,"_283":341,"_42":342,"_248":343,"_286":-5,"_29":287,"_288":344,"_290":345,"_241":346,"_80":-5,"_82":121,"_235":347,"_278":236,"_313":360},"Stars and Stripes employees sue Pentagon to block firings","Employees of Stars and Stripes have filed a lawsuit against the Pentagon to block their terminations, which they claim violated the First Amendment. The lawsuit was filed by Publisher Max Lederer, Editor-in-Chief Erik Slavin, and reporter Lara Korte. They allege that Slavin and Korte were fired for advocating for Stars and Stripes' independence, while Lederer was dismissed for refusing to fire them.","Employees of the congressionally funded Stars and Stripes newspaper filed a lawsuit on Thursday to block the Pentagon from firing them after they were dismissed on charges of insubordination.","https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Hegseth.jpg?resize=1200,683","2026-08-27T21:47:14","https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense/4703465/stars-and-stripes-lawsuit-pentagon-firings-insubordination/","politics",{"_27":348,"_294":349,"_137":296,"_80":350,"_308":357,"_309":358,"_311":359},"f32dec966006b7ffcf9b7052581715aca838b1c72f724e0c857e8c3dde8991ed","efdae9b1d6175c83c1dca635714cd80ff8b67b9615abe58737e43b4fd7c3d54bb8f97786ab0d0cfd90fcfcab4d6985993a2c75f5a2f1ae26f79f5a9155b9b32f",[351,352,353,355,356],[241,340],[44,343],[301,354,39,303],"30023:273e8bb9fd7425c0374f8baaf3104fc54a564adcca09161692dd60c903b72e26:de474884-ed27-47e2-a2e9-5a312609e9d2",[305,39],[140,357,39],"273e8bb9fd7425c0374f8baaf3104fc54a564adcca09161692dd60c903b72e26","Stars and Stripes employees sue Pentagon to block firings\nEmployees of the congressionally funded Stars and Stripes newspaper filed a lawsuit on Thursday to block the Pentagon from firing them after they were dismissed on charges of insubordination.\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzqfe73wul6ap9cqm5lza27vgyl3222e9dejsfzctf9htqeypmwt3xqqjxgef5xu6rswp594jkgv3h956rwefj94snyefe956kzve3xgmrqwt989jryduvz44 ",1787899600,"Employees of the congressionally funded Stars and Stripes newspaper filed a lawsuit on Thursday to block the Pentagon from firing them after they were dismissed on charges of insubordination.\nPublisher Max Lederer, Editor-in-Chief Erik Slavin, and reporter Lara Korte filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, arguing each of their terminations, which went into effect on Friday, violated the First Amendment.\nLawyers for the plaintiffs are arguing that Slavin and Korte were fired for saying that Stars and Stripes should stay independent from the Department of War and any political influence, while Lederer refused to fire the two employees, according to a news release from the plaintiff’s legal team.",{"_278":236,"_279":362,"_280":363},"f8393738-b7f0-4653-b6e2-649d1ed5ac12",{"_27":362,"_40":364,"_283":365,"_42":366,"_248":367,"_286":-5,"_29":287,"_288":368,"_290":369,"_241":346,"_80":-5,"_82":120,"_235":370,"_278":236,"_313":383},"Three journalists sue Pentagon after being fired from military news outlet","Three journalists, formerly employed by the government-funded Stars and Stripes, have filed a lawsuit against the Department of Defense, alleging their dismissals violated their First Amendment rights. The journalists claim their firings were in retaliation for speaking out in support of press freedom and for publishing a report detailing deteriorating conditions on the USS Abraham Lincoln. The lawsuit asserts that the Pentagon acted after the publication of the USS Abraham Lincoln report, despite previous statements endorsing the news outlet's editorial independence.","Three employees of Stars and Stripes, a government-funded news service, allege they were fired after reporting on USS Abraham Lincoln","https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/62e5c5d8ad6028682bb98ae32ca716d218d30d34/0_534_4733_3787/master/4733.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&precrop=40:21,offset-x50,offset-y0&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctZGVmYXVsdC5wbmc&enable=upscale&s=498c505b7111524c20045c39cf8761c6","2026-08-27T23:33:27","https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/27/journalists-sue-pentagon-stars-and-stripes",{"_27":371,"_294":372,"_137":296,"_80":373,"_308":380,"_309":381,"_311":382},"fa75bd2c5586549f3d655c557938d7828aa4d0643943b64470bcc1fcada821eb","ef397d3b124e4c1d87c1703e56dc7e420bf1ca191413c5f25219b3f1ba2193a5fdc729c8ff813809f1deda137bb88ebd978bfca1741a24ed65b626e35d9b69d9",[374,375,376,378,379],[241,364],[44,367],[301,377,39,303],"30023:c70c3496af43d505c85c2c54b4792401b1620ba0b7793cc8e68348d7f2a209da:f8393738-b7f0-4653-b6e2-649d1ed5ac12",[305,39],[140,380,39],"c70c3496af43d505c85c2c54b4792401b1620ba0b7793cc8e68348d7f2a209da","Three journalists sue Pentagon after being fired from military news outlet\nThree employees of Stars and Stripes, a government-funded news service, allege they were fired after reporting on USS Abraham Lincoln\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzp3cvxjt27s74qhy9ctz5k3ujgqd3vg96pdme8nywdq6g6le2yzw6qqjxvwpn8yenwvec943rwe3s956rvdfn943rvefj95mrgwtyx9jkgdtpvvcnyvs27xj ",1787899055,"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.\nThe 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”.\nMax 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”.\nSlavin 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. According to the complaint, no one at the Pentagon took “immediate action” after the interview aired on 5 July.\n“After all, the anodyne statements endorsing Stripes’ editorial independence were entirely consistent with DoD’s own longstanding insistence on Stripes’ independence,” reads the complaint.\nThe 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.\n“The article broke a major story about deteriorating conditions aboard the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln,” the complaint says. “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”.\nThe 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. Lederer ultimately declined to comply with the order.\n“Lederer did not deliver the notices,” the suit explains. “Instead, he decided then and there to retire, and informed the Stripes’ staff via 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.”\nLederer was dismissed shortly after announcing his impending retirement, effective at the end of 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.\n“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.\nThe Pentagon did not immediately return a request for comment on Thursday’s lawsuit.",{"_278":236,"_279":385,"_280":386},"f9627a48-cb1b-4c1c-bfc3-3e1ed04d02d6",{"_27":385,"_40":387,"_283":388,"_42":389,"_248":390,"_286":-5,"_29":287,"_288":391,"_290":392,"_241":346,"_80":-5,"_82":120,"_235":393,"_278":236,"_313":406},"Fired Stars and Stripes journalists sue Hegseth and Pentagon spokesperson","Three Stars and Stripes journalists have filed a lawsuit against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other Pentagon officials, claiming their recent terminations are illegal and part of censorship efforts. The journalists allege their firings for insubordination were retaliatory for speaking out about press freedom and reporting on poor conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. The lawsuit asserts these actions violate the journalists' First Amendment and statutory rights.","Updated on: August 27, 2026 / 5:29 PM EDT / CBS News","https://assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com/hub/i/r/2026/08/27/6f774b8e-a687-49e0-8fdc-35493bca1275/thumbnail/1200x630/8493e2b396ed9342af9c50c9549fd93c/ap26224713754836.jpg","2026-08-27T21:01:00","https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fired-stars-and-stripes-journalists-sue-hegseth-and-pentagon-spokesperson/",{"_27":394,"_294":395,"_137":296,"_80":396,"_308":403,"_309":404,"_311":405},"58d92b7e0f58ac5a2beb90b52e391b74c0e65fbe1d3edceac57d5ad8a2609826","4766b564a4da7f73ceec12e6ae613f06efe0b536eddd31ef23febee792cc7907202c723c6492985c642d12a38d49b7b4b9ad794cb71de6f4b13d0c3ea3aab621",[397,398,399,401,402],[241,387],[44,390],[301,400,39,303],"30023:6759f7a309cd07f7abfe0c57ab4e0ff30ffcd68d9c744d403f22e2428df23738:f9627a48-cb1b-4c1c-bfc3-3e1ed04d02d6",[305,39],[140,403,39],"6759f7a309cd07f7abfe0c57ab4e0ff30ffcd68d9c744d403f22e2428df23738","Fired Stars and Stripes journalists sue Hegseth and Pentagon spokesperson\nUpdated on: August 27, 2026 / 5:29 PM EDT / CBS News\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzqe6e773snng8774lurzh4d8qluc0lntgm8r5f4qr7ghzg2xlydecqqjxvwfkxgmkzdpc943kyvtz956xxvtr943xvcen95ek2vt9vscrgepsxfjrvknccus ",1787899119,"Three fired Stars and Stripes journalists sued Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and two other top Pentagon officials in federal court Thursday, claiming the Trump administration is attempting to fire them illegally as part of its \"extraordinary censorship efforts\" against the military news outlet.\nThe plaintiffs — publisher Max Lederer, editor-in-chief Erik Slavin and reporter Lara Korte — were given separation notices last week. The cause cited was insubordination.\nThey alleged that they were fired both for \"speaking up as private citizens in support of the press's freedom to cover military operations,\" and because of their reporting on rough conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier. The lawsuit names Hegseth, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell and aide Andrew Brey as defendants.\nSlavin and Korte said the alleged insubordination cited in their termination notices was related to interviews they gave to CBS News for a piece on \"CBS Sunday Morning\" that aired in July. In the story, Korte said that she worked for Stars and Stripes, \"not for the Pentagon, not for any administration, not for any policymaker.\"\nMore than a month later, the newspaper published a piece detailing flagging mental health and food and water shortages aboard the Lincoln, which has been deployed for nine months. A day after that story ran, the lawsuit says, the defendants \"ordered plaintiff Max Lederer, Stripes' publisher, to present notices of separation to Mr. Slavin and Ms. Korte.\"\n\"The notices charged them with insubordination for the statements they made five and one-half weeks earlier on 'CBS Sunday Morning,'\" the lawsuit reads.\nHe did not deliver the notices. Lederer announced his intent to retire at the end of September over \"fundamental\" differences with the Defense Department, but the Pentagon fired him before he could.\nThe three fired staffers' complaint says they are \"facing imminent retaliation and termination in violation of their First Amendment and statutory rights.\"\n\"This action seeks to prevent the blatant violation of the First Amendment rights of these journalists and challenges the U.S. Department of Defense's (\"DoD\") extraordinary censorship efforts in violation of both the First Amendment and DoD regulations and policies,\" the lawsuit reads.\nCBS News has reached out to the Pentagon for comment.\nStars and Stripes was first published during the Civil War, and in recent decades, the paper has prided itself on its editorial independence — meaning the federal government does not dictate what it can and can't publish.\nRoughly half of the paper's $29 million annual budget comes from taxpayers, a person familiar with the newspaper's operations told CBS News last week. Readership has declined since its peaks during the Vietnam War, the Cold War and World War II, according to two U.S. officials, but an average of 1.4 million people see Stars and Stripes each day. Print editions overseas also reach service members in remote locations where internet access is spotty and unreliable.\nEarlier this year, Parnell said the Defense Department would make sweeping changes to the paper. He vowed to \"modernize its operations, refocus its content away from woke distractions that syphon morale, and adapt it to serve a new generation of service members.\" The Pentagon later sought to stop the paper from running syndicated articles by wire services, Slavin has said.\nShortly after the firings, Stars and Stripes published an open letter from Navy Capt. William Urban, who said he was tapped to serve as military deputy to the publisher. Urban wrote that his priorities were to produce \"the highest quality of editorially independent reporting,\" while modernizing the paper and boosting its advertising revenue.",[],"selectedArticleImage","rootArticleImageUrl","consensusHtml","tweets",[],"userSchema","relatedArticles",[281,363,339,386,317],"actionData","errors"]

Stars and Stripes Staffers Sue Pentagon Over Firings

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