Longtime publisher of Stars and Stripes publication retires amid Pentagon clash over USS Lincoln

The long-standing publisher of Stars and Stripes has stepped down, concluding a multi-decade career at the military newspaper amid efforts by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s Pentagon to control editorial coverage and eliminate what officials term “woke distractions.”

Max D. Lederer Jr., only the second full-time civilian to hold the position, confirmed his departure in a staff memo issued Tuesday and during an interview with Stars and Stripes.

His retirement takes effect at the end of September.

In the memo, seen by The Associated Press, he wrote that it had “become clear that my philosophy of leadership, and my understanding of the value and mission of Stars and Stripes, differ in fundamental ways from the direction the leadership of the Department of Defense has for the organization.”

This decision follows the removal four months prior of Jacqueline Smith, the publication’s ombudsman tasked with preserving editorial autonomy.

Although partially financed by the Defense Department, the news organization historically maintains independence from military leadership.

In a column, Smith wrote, “No one should be surprised that they’re kicking out the one person charged by Congress with protecting Stars and Stripes’ editorial independence.”

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Stars and Stripes recently led reporting regarding conditions and mental health concerns among sailors on the USS Abraham Lincoln during an extended deployment — issues that President Donald Trump has downplayed.

The publisher’s departure comes seven months after the Pentagon announced via a social media post that it intended to overhaul the newspaper to align with department messaging.

Sean Parnell, a spokesman for the secretary, posted on X in January that the department “is returning Stars and Stripes to its original mission: reporting for our warfighters.” He stated the department would “refocus its content away from woke distractions.”

“Stars and Stripes will be custom tailored to our warfighters,” Parnell wrote. “It will focus on warfighting, weapons systems, fitness, lethality, survivability and ALL THINGS MILITARY. No more repurposed DC gossip columns; no more Associated Press reprints.”

These developments fit into broader efforts by Hegseth to regulate media coverage of the department.

Last year, officials attempted to place restrictions on journalists working inside the Pentagon, leading most news organizations to surrender their credentials and walk out.

This summer, the Pentagon declared its press space classified, introducing a policy requiring reporters to be escorted while on the grounds. That measure is being challenged in court. In mid-July, a panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled the policy could remain, overturning a lower court decision.

In an April column titled “The Pentagon is trying to silence me,” Smith expressed concern over mounting media restrictions.

“For nearly a year, Pentagon leadership has placed more and more restrictions on the mainstream media,” she wrote. “The New York Times sued and when the Defense/War Department lost in court, instead of following the judge’s ruling Secretary Hegseth and company pivoted, finding another way to restrict journalists.”

Addressing Stars and Stripes, Smith wrote: “This newspaper has a long history of commitment to the military community and to journalistic values. Please don’t let it be controlled by Pentagon brass.”

Lederer was unavailable for an AP interview. Speaking to Stars and Stripes, he expressed reservations about Pentagon modernization efforts announced in March, particularly shifting print editions to digital, warning it could restrict access for troops.

“I don’t feel that there’s a full recognition of the value of multiple platforms versus only a digital platform,” Lederer was quoted as saying.

In a letter to congressional leaders seen by the AP, Rufus Friday, chairman of the Stars and Stripes advisory board of publishers, noted the situation “threatens Stripes’s editorial independence.”

Roughly half of the outlet’s budget comes from the Pentagon, and its employees are Defense Department staff.

The publication’s mission statement specifies that it is “editorially independent of interference from outside its own editorial chain-of-command” and stands alone among Defense Department-affiliated news outlets in being “governed by the principles of the First Amendment.”

Tracing its roots to the Civil War, the newspaper has continuously reported on military affairs since World War II, serving an audience primarily composed of overseas service members.