Summary
The U.S. Defense Department plans to change the focus of the military newspaper Stars and Stripes to concentrate on content relevant to military personnel and eliminate what it calls "woke distractions." The Pentagon intends to have more content created by active-duty service members and reduce reliance on external news agencies. The decision raises questions about the paper's independence, which was established by Congress in the 1990s.
Key Facts
- The Pentagon wants Stars and Stripes to focus on military-related topics like warfighting, weapons, and fitness.
- Stars and Stripes has a long history of editorial independence dating back to the Civil War.
- About half of Stars and Stripes' funding comes from the Pentagon.
- The Pentagon's new plan involves having articles written by active-duty service members.
- The U.S. Congress had previously established the publication's editorial independence in the 1990s.
- The Pentagon also plans to stop publishing content from news agencies like the Associated Press.
- The publisher of Stars and Stripes expressed concern about the impact of these changes on the paper's value and independence.
