Pentagon Weighs Stars and Stripes Publisher's Future
PHOTO CAPTION: Col. Christopher M. Coglianese, left, deputy chief of staff, U.S. Army Central (Forward), meets with Max D. Lederer Jr., center, publisher, Stars and Stripes, and Col. Simon L. Schaefer, commander, 34th Red Bull Infantry Division (Forward), April 4, 2019, at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait.
Pentagon officials have discussed firing longtime Stars and Stripes publisher Max Lederer before his planned retirement at the end of September, according to U.S. officials cited by CBS News.
Lederer, who has served as publisher for 19 years and spent more than three decades at Stars and Stripes, announced this week that he plans to retire Sept. 30. He told employees that his view of the newspaper’s mission and leadership differs fundamentally from the direction Pentagon leaders want to take the publication.
No decision to fire Lederer has been announced, and CBS reported Thursday that it was unclear when the Pentagon would make a decision about the newspaper’s leadership. The Defense Department did not immediately comment on the reported discussions.
The dispute comes as Pentagon leaders push to overhaul Stars and Stripes, the military-focused newspaper that receives roughly half of its funding from taxpayers while operating with longstanding protections intended to preserve its editorial independence.
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said earlier this year that the department intends to modernize the publication and shift its coverage toward warfighting, weapons systems, fitness, lethality and survivability. He also criticized what he described as “woke distractions” and the use of republished Washington news coverage.
Lederer has publicly taken a different view of the publication’s mission. In his retirement message to employees, he said it had become clear that his philosophy of leadership and understanding of Stars and Stripes’ value differed in “fundamental ways” from the Pentagon’s plans for the organization.
The leadership fight is also drawing scrutiny on Capitol Hill. Sens. Richard Blumenthal, Elizabeth Warren and Jeanne Shaheen sent Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth a letter Thursday questioning the Pentagon’s decision to place an active-duty public affairs officer in a deputy role under Lederer.
The senators said putting an active-duty officer into senior leadership at a publication that depends on separation from the military chain of command raises questions about its editorial independence. They asked whether the officer could become acting or permanent publisher after Lederer leaves and whether the officer would have authority over editorial, personnel, budget or management decisions.
The lawmakers gave the Pentagon until Aug. 28 to explain the assignment and describe safeguards preventing Defense Department officials from influencing the newspaper’s coverage.
Stars and Stripes has occupied an unusual position inside the military for generations. It is authorized by the Defense Department and partially funded by the government but has historically operated with editorial protections allowing its journalists to report critically on military leadership and conditions affecting troops.
Its coverage has included problems with military housing, barracks and child care, as well as decisions by senior military and civilian leaders. More recently, Stars and Stripes reported extensively on conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln during its unusually long deployment to the Middle East.
Pentagon officials have also raised concerns about the publication’s reach and business model. CBS reported that annual print distribution fell from about 7 million copies in 2019 to 6.2 million in 2024, while annual unique visitors to its website declined from roughly 20 million to 14 million during the same period.
The newspaper nevertheless reaches a large military audience, particularly overseas, where its print editions remain available to troops stationed in locations where reliable internet access can be limited.
The possible early removal of Lederer adds another flashpoint to the fight over what Stars and Stripes should become — and how much influence Pentagon leadership should have over a newspaper created to serve the troops while also reporting independently on the institution they serve.
(Source: OAF Nation)
