A federal judge on Friday refused to block the Pentagon from firing three Stars and Stripes journalists who say they were punished for speaking out about the military newspaper’s editorial independence.
U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden ruled that publisher Max Lederer, editor-in-chief Erik Slavin and Middle East reporter Lara Korte are unlikely to prove the Defense Department violated their First Amendment rights. He said the outlet’s independence “is not at stake here” and that the journalists had not shown their firings would chill protected speech at the paper.
The three sued last Thursday in Washington, D.C., after the Pentagon, which partially funds Stars and Stripes, moved to dismiss them. Slavin said he was fired for insubordination after a CBS News interview in which he objected to possible military censorship. Korte took part in the same interview.
Their lawsuit also alleges retaliation for a report on deteriorating conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. Lederer was dismissed shortly after announcing his retirement; he said the Pentagon installed an active-duty deputy publisher under him without his knowledge.
The Defense Department and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are among the defendants. The journalists are represented by Democracy Defenders Fund, Lawyers for Good Government, the Government Accountability Project and a Yale Law School clinic.
Attorney Taryn Wilgus Null of Democracy Defenders Fund said the ruling underscores the high bar for a preliminary injunction and is not the final word. “While we are disappointed in the decision, we fully expect to prevail after we have an opportunity to take discovery and all the facts are revealed,” she said.