Judge Denies Request to Block Pentagon from Firing Stars and Stripes Staff

A federal judge has denied requests for a temporary restraining order that would have blocked the Pentagon from firing three Stars and Stripes journalists. US District Judge Trevor McFadden ruled on Friday that the government likely did not violate the First Amendment rights of publisher Max Lederer, editor in chief Erik Slavin, and Middle East reporter Lara Korte. The ruling allows the Pentagon to proceed with the terminations.

The three journalists filed a lawsuit on August 28, alleging they were illegally pushed out following a July 5 CBS Sunday Morning segment. The lawsuit claims the Pentagon was displeased with statements made by Slavin and Korte regarding the editorial independence of the newspaper. According to the lawsuit, the Pentagon directed Lederer to remove Slavin and Korte after the paper reported on hardships aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln; Lederer did not comply and later announced his retirement.

In his written ruling, Judge McFadden stated that Slavin and Korte had received permission from superiors for their remarks and appeared to be speaking as part of their official duties rather than as private citizens. Regarding Lederer, the judge wrote that a failure to carry out a directive from a supervisor is not protected by the First Amendment. McFadden further noted that while the plaintiffs may have been victims of a cruel bait and switch, the situation did not clearly offend the First Amendment.

Center left framing describes the ruling as a blow to press freedoms and part of a broader effort by the Pentagon to undo the editorial independence of the military newspaper. This perspective notes that the Pentagon previously sought to refocus content away from woke distractions and has faced other lawsuits from an ombudsman and advisory board members over allegations of illegal censorship.