‘Stars and Stripes’ Not Forever?

Plus our usual cartoons, new season for “The Pitt,” and Phoebe covers Cobain.

Aug 22, 2026

Still free to subscribe to this nearly daily newsletter! Greg Mitchell is author of fourteen books and director of five films for PBS since 2022. In a previous life, he was a longtime editor at the legendary Crawdaddy. His latest film “Woody Guthrie and The Ghost of Tom Joad Today” is now streaming everywhere via PBS.

What’s up doc? First teaser for Octobet return.

Outrage continues to echo after this series of firings yesterday, much more to come. NY Times:

Pentagon Fires Editor and Publisher of Independent Military Publication

The firings at Stars and Stripes also claimed a Middle East correspondent. They are the latest effort by the Pentagon to diminish the news outlet’s editorial independence.

Former Army officer, Lucian Truscott IV:

The editor in chief, Erik Slavin, told the Associated Press that he was fired “for insubordination” after giving an interview to CBS in which he stated that “censorship of news for service members would constitute a red line.” A reporter for the paper who covers the Middle East, Lara Korte, was also fired after she told CBS that she works “for Stars and Stripes, not the Pentagon, not the administration, and not any policy maker.”
Stars and Stripes, which has a daily circulation online and in print of about one million readers, is distributed to members of the military all over the world. In many, far-distant locations, it is the only English language paper service members have access to.
In January of this year, the Washington Post reported that new employees of the paper were being asked to answer questions about their political leanings and loyalty to the Trump administration.
Stars and Stripes reporters have always occupied a middle zone between purely civilian newsgatherers and military spokespeople. Some reporters for Stars and Stripes are civilian, and some are senior enlisted soldiers. Reporters for the Stars and Stripes are trusted by soldiers, and the paper has often beat civilian newspapers to stories about bogus decisions made by commanders and conditions down in the ranks in the services. Stars and Stripes was among the first to report on unsanitary conditions on the USS Lincoln aircraft carrier, and the paper covered the strain on families of sailors who had been deployed for more than 250 days. Hegseth criticized the coverage and called the reports “dishonest.” (Reporters for Stars and Stripes shared their notes with me after a military command press conference I missed in Afghanistan and helped me out when I was embedded with the 101st Airborne Division in Iraq.)
Today Hegseth’s spokesman, Sean Parnell, told reporters that the Stars and Stripes would henceforth be directed “away from woke distractions that syphon morale.”
Long live Stars and Stripes and the honorable service the paper has provided for decades to soldiers and to the nation.

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Was happy to read a swell piece from journal at the John Steinbeck Center in San Jose, CA re: my new PBS with strong Steinbeck tie, “Woody Guthrie and the Ghost of Tom Joad Today.” And appreciate their mini-bio of yours truly: “journalist, documentarian, and advocate for fundamental human rights.”

Although Woody Guthrie and John Steinbeck’s paths often overlapped, it wasn’t until later that they finally met in person. Each admired the other’s work, and this documentary beautifully weaves their stories together into a single narrative.
Ultimately, Woody Guthrie and The Ghost of Tom Joad reminds us that history is never as distant as we’d like to believe. It asks us to recognize the dignity of every person, regardless of class, circumstance, education, dialect, or social standing. It is an inspiring reminder that caring for one another, treating people fairly, and defending our shared humanity are values that remain just as important today.