Overview
- The paper’s publisher Max Lederer, editor Erik Slavin and reporter Lara Korte filed a 45‑page federal complaint on Thursday that names the Defense Department, Secretary Pete Hegseth and senior public affairs officials as defendants.
- The three received separation notices on Aug. 21 for alleged insubordination with paperwork for Slavin and Korte citing a July CBS interview in which they defended Stars and Stripes’ editorial independence.
- The suit says Leatherer was targeted after he refused Pentagon demands to fire Slavin and Korte and was later cited for insubordination after announcing his planned retirement.
- Pentagon attorneys agreed on Friday to keep the staffers on administrative leave for another week while Judge Trevor McFadden weighs the plaintiffs’ request for a temporary restraining order and a Sept. 4 hearing is scheduled.
- The case builds on broader concern over the Pentagon’s 2026 ‘modernization’ of Stars and Stripes, which imposed content limits and led to the ombudsman’s firing, and could determine whether service members continue to receive independent reporting about conditions inside the military.