Published Aug 21, 2026, 6:45 PM EDT
The announcement was made Friday by the publication itself, coming hours after the publisher said he was planning to retire after three decades.
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Published Aug 21, 2026, 6:45 PM EDT
The Pentagon took major action against Stars and Stripes on Friday, firing its publisher, editor and a Middle East reporter. The Aug. 21 terminations included publisher Max Lederer Jr., editor-in-chief Erik Slavin and reporter Lara Korte, announced by the publication itself while the outgoing staffers vowed to maintain editorial independence. Slavin, who told CBS News in a July interview that he stood by the publication's "editorial independence" and not kowtowing to the Pentagon's agenda or control, told the publication following his firing that he received a notice of proposed separation and is reviewing it. Slavin became editor in 2025 after initially joining the outlet in 2005. An anonymous Pentagon official confirmed Slavin's separation notice to Stars and Stripes, also referencing an open letter published Friday by Navy Capt. William Urban, the paper’s newly installed military deputy to the publisher, on the future direction of the publication. Military.com reached out to Slavin and the Pentagon for comment.
