‘My concerns are more for our service members’: Former Stars and Stripes editor on his and other firings

By Tracy Johnke
August 23, 2026 | 12:34 PM

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Former Stars and Stripe’s Editor-in-Chief Eric Slavin speaks to 麻豆官网’s Ralph Fox.

One of the Stars and Stripes staffers fired by the Pentagon said changes at the military newspaper could threaten its ability to cover news important to U.S. service members and their families.

Eric Slavin, the newspaper鈥檚 editor-in-chief, was fired Friday. Stars and Stripes publisher Max Lederer and Middle East reporter Lara Korte also lost their jobs.

“It was quite a shock,” Slavin told 麻豆官网’s Ralph Fox. “It’s not what I expected when I woke up on Friday, but really concerns are more for our service members and our families and what may lay ahead.”

Slavin previously told The Associated Press he was dismissed for insubordination after a CBS News interview in which he objected to potential censorship by the U.S. military.

鈥淚 stand by the principle that Stars and Stripes must remain editorially independent, as required by law and by the department鈥檚 own policies,鈥� he said.

In an interview with 麻豆官网, Slavin said tensions existed between the Pentagon and Stars and Stripes staff since January.

“There was a tweet put out by the Department of Defense Public Affairs that suggested radical changes without any prior consultation with the staff of Stars and Stripes,” he said.

Fired opinion writer still waiting for call from Washington Post after arbitrator ordered reinstatement, back pay

By Neal Augenstein
August 25, 2026 | 1:59 PM

Several days after an arbitrator ordered the Washington Post to reinstate fired opinion writer Karen Attiah, she told 麻豆官网 she's still hasn't gotten a phone call about returning to work. "I'm waiting to hear from the Washington Post as of this morning," Attiah said. "I'm willing to go back to the work that I was doing as a columnist and as a writer particularly focused on race, gender and international rights." A Thursday ruling by arbitrator Sarah Miller Espinosa said the newspaper did not have sufficient cause to fire Attiah over social media posts about violent white men following last year's killing of Charlie Kirk, and ordered the Post to award Attiah full back pay and lost benefits. "So, the Washington Post has its marching orders, let's see if they follow them," said Attiah, who described her reaction to arbitrator's ruling as "vindicated, slightly tired, really happy about the decision and reinstatement, plus back pay, of course."