Press Freedom and First Amendment

The Trump Pentagon has moved to exert far greater control over Stars and Stripes, the century‑old, Congressionally chartered newspaper produced for U.S. troops, announcing a plan to "refocus" its content away from what officials call "woke distractions" and toward war‑fighting, weapons, fitness and "ALL THINGS MILITARY." Pentagon press secretary Sean Parnell, an adviser to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, said in a social‑media post that Stars and Stripes will be "custom tailored" to warfighters, while a Federal Register notice signals the department intends to scrap 1990s directives that guaranteed the paper operational and editorial independence from the chain of command. Current editor‑in‑chief Erik Slavin told staff that "the people who risk their lives in defense of the Constitution have earned the right to the press freedoms of the First Amendment" and warned against censorship, pointing to a history that dates back to Civil War volunteers and Eisenhower’s insistence on "no censorship" other than for security. For decades Stars and Stripes has broken unflattering stories about black mold in barracks, unsafe base child care and mismanaged overseas housing that mainstream outlets often ignore, and press‑freedom advocates worry the new push to pack it with command‑friendly content written by active‑duty personnel will mute that watchdog role. The change comes as the broader Trump defense agenda emphasizes "morale" and ideological conformity, raising fears—echoed in military forums and veterans’ groups online—that a rare, internal check on Pentagon leadership is about to be turned into a house organ.

The Pentagon is overhauling Stars and Stripes, saying the paper will be "custom‑tailored to our warfighters" with coverage focused on war‑fighting, weapons systems, fitness and survivability, cutting Associated Press reprints and other Washington‑centric pieces and moving to content written by active‑duty service members — roughly half produced directly by the Defense Department, officials say. The department has published a Federal Register notice to eliminate 1990s directives that govern the paper; publisher Max Lederer says it is unclear what that means for the outlet’s congressionally mandated editorial independence or whether DoD can make the change without congressional authorization.