АНУ-ын Батлан хамгаалах яамны бодлогод шүүмжлэлтэй хандсан “Stars and Stripes” сонины редакцын ахлах ажилтнууд албан тушаалаасаа чөлөөлөгдлөө.
Пентагоны санхүүжилтээр хэвлэгддэг ч хуулийн дагуу редакцын хараат бус байдлыг хадгалах үүрэгтэй тус сонины ерөнхий редактор Эрик Славин, хэвлэн нийтлэгч Макс Ледерер болон Ойрх Дорнод хариуцсан сурвалжлагч Лара Корте нарт албан үүргээс нь чөлөөлөх мэдэгдлийг баасан гарагт гардуулжээ. Тэднийг албан тушаалын байдлаа урвуулан ашигласан буюу захирагдах ёс зөрчсөн гэж буруутгасан байна. Эрик Славин CBS сувагт өгсөн ярилцлагадаа цэргийн алба хаагчдад зориулсан мэдээллийг цензурдэх нь улаан шугам давсан үйлдэл гэж мэдэгдсэнийхээ төлөө ажлаасаа халагдсанаа онцолжээ.
Тус сонин нь АНУ-ын цэргийн хүчний Иран дахь үйл ажиллагаа, цэргүүдийн ёс суртахуун, амьдрах нөхцөл байдал болон зэвсэг техник, хангамжийн асуудлыг шүүмжлэлтэйгээр сурвалжилж ирсэн юм. Тухайлбал, USS Abraham Lincoln нисэх онгоц тээгч хөлөг онгоцон дээрх нөхцөл байдал болон Ирантай хийж буй дайны стратегийн алдаа дутагдлын талаарх нийтлэлүүд нь Пентагоны удирдлагуудын дургүйцлийг хүргэсэн байна. Сэтгүүлчид Пентагоны зүгээс сонины хараат бус байдлыг хязгаарлах, “woke” буюу улс төрийн хэт туйлширсан үзлийг цэргийн хүчнээс ангижруулах нэрийн дор редакцын бодлогод хөндлөнгөөс оролцож байгааг эсэргүүцэж байжээ.
Энэхүү халагдсан ажилтнууд нь сонины редакцын бие даасан байдлыг хамгаалах үүрэгтэй байсан бөгөөд өмнө нь тус сонины омбудсмен Жаклин Смит мөн ижил шалтгаанаар ажлаасаа халагдаж, Батлан хамгаалах яамыг шүүхэд өгөөд байсан юм. АНУ-ын Батлан хамгаалахын сайд Пит Хегсет цэргийн хүчний дунд “дайчин сэтгэлгээг” сэргээж, улс төрийн нөлөөллийг шахах бодлого баримталж байгаа нь хэвлэл мэдээллийн эрх чөлөөний асуудлыг хурцатгаж байна.
Дэлгэрэнгүйг эх сурвалжаас харах
↓Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
Senior staff defended the military newspaper’s editorial independence after reporting on problems facing US forces during the Iran war
The Pentagon has fired senior employees of its newspaper Stars and Stripes after they publicly criticized what they called government interference in its editorial policy.
First published during the US Civil War in 1861, the newspaper has served as a voice for American troops and reaches about 1.4 million readers daily online and through its overseas print editions. Although partly funded by the Pentagon, it is legally required to maintain editorial independence. The paper recently criticized US tactics in the war against Iran and reported on numerous problems facing the military during the campaign.
Editor-in-chief Erik Slavin, publisher Max Lederer, and Middle East reporter Lara Korte each received a notice of separation on Friday citing insubordination.
Slavin told AP that he was fired “for stating in a CBS interview that hypothetical censorship of news for service members would constitute a red line.”
“I stand by the principle that Stars and Stripes must remain editorially independent, as required by law and by the department’s own policies,” he added.
Korte, who participated in the same interview last month, wrote on X that she was dismissed after telling CBS that she worked for Stars and Stripes and “not the Pentagon, not any administration, and not any policy maker.”
Lederer, who had served as publisher for 19 years and was due to retire in September, wrote in his resignation letter on Tuesday that his understanding of the newspaper’s “value and mission” differed “in fundamental ways” from the Pentagon leadership’s plans.
In an interview published on July 5, the journalists criticized a push to rid the paper of what the Pentagon termed “woke distractions that siphon morale,” as well as changes to regulations guaranteeing its independence. Slavin said his team had been barred from publishing news from paid wire services such as AP, making it “more difficult for us to cover breaking news.”
Jacqueline Smith, the publication’s ombudsman responsible for safeguarding its editorial independence, was fired in January after writing an article critical of Pentagon press restrictions. She later sued the Defense Department, alleging that her dismissal was retaliatory.
Stars and Stripes was among the first outlets to report on deteriorating living conditions and low morale aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, which spent more than 200 days operating near Iran without port calls. It also reported on ammunition shortages and published an op-ed earlier this month by retired US Army Lieutenant Colonel Daniel L. Davis, who argued that “America’s war against Iran has already been lost at the strategic level.”
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly accused media outlets of spreading “fake news” and sued several of them. His War Secretary, Pete Hegseth, has vowed to push “woke culture” out of the military and revive “the warrior spirit.”
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