The Pentagon has dismissed the ombudsman for Stars and Stripes, the congressionally protected independent newspaper for American troops, as part of its broader push to remake the publication. Jacqueline Smith told staff in a message Thursday that she was informed this week that she had been removed from the Defense Department payroll, and that publisher Max D. Lederer Jr. said the order came from Sean Parnell, the Pentagon official leading the overhaul. The Defense Department confirmed to the Washington Post that Smith was "relieved of her duties … effective immediately" but did not explain why.
Smith, who has publicly criticized the overhaul, said she believes she was ousted for warning that the changes threaten Stars and Stripes' editorial independence. "I knew it was risky to speak out, but my responsibility to Stripes and the First Amendment was paramount," she wrote. Lederer praised Smith in an email to staff as "exceptionally diligent and thoughtful," noting that Congress created the ombudsman role to provide independent oversight of both the outlet's journalism and its Pentagon management. Parnell, who is also assistant to the defense secretary for public affairs, will choose her replacement.
Some staffers called her removal concerning and part of a pattern of disruptions. Clayton Weimers of Reporters Without Borders said the decision underscores Pentagon efforts to exert control over the paper. In January, Smith began a column with "Stars and Stripes, the legendary newspaper for the U.S. military community, is in peril of losing its editorial independence and becoming nothing more than a public relations arm of the Pentagon." In a farewell column titled "The Pentagon is trying to silence me," Smith urged Congress to further protect the publication's autonomy, writing, "Please don't let it be controlled by Pentagon brass."
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