(WASHINGTON)–PEN America expressed alarm today over the Department of Defense’s firing of Jacqueline Smith, who served as the ombudsman for Stars and Stripes in a role that Congress established to safeguard the publication’s editorial independence. The decision comes after the Pentagon in January called the publication “woke,” while announcing changes that interfered with the independence of a news organization founded during the Civil War.
“Jacqueline Smith spent months warning Stars and Stripes readers, the public, and Congress about the Pentagon’s efforts to shift editorial decision-making away from the newsroom and into the hands of political appointees. Now Smith has been fired for doing exactly what Congress intended Stars and Stripes’ ombudsman to do – protecting the independence the publication has held for decades,” said Tim Richardson, journalism and disinformation program director at PEN America. “Even as the nation is at war, Pentagon leadership is silencing independent voices that uphold credible reporting, part of a broader pattern of restricting press access to evade scrutiny. Congress must defend the statutory independence of Stars and Stripes so that service members can continue to rely on it for independent reporting.”
The interference into Stars and Stripes and removal of Smith come amid multiple other steps the Pentagon has taken to limit credible, independent reporting. The Pentagon forced out most of the press corps last year for refusing to sign sweeping restrictions on standard reporting practices.
U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman ruled last month that parts of the Trump administration’s changes to the Pentagon’s press policy were unconstitutional and struck them down as viewpoint discrimination, then determined earlier this month that the Pentagon violated that order. The Defense Department has banned photojournalists from Iran war briefings over photos it deemed ‘unflattering’.
About PEN America
PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide. We champion the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. Our mission is to unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. Learn more at pen.org.
Contact: Suzanne Trimel, [email protected], (201) 247-5057