Pentagon orders shutdown of Stars and Stripes newspaper
AP NEWS 30 minutes ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon has ordered the military’s independent newspaper, Stars and Stripes, to cease publication at the end of the month, despite congressional efforts to continue funding the century-old publication.
The order to halt publication by Sept. 30, and dissolve the organization by the end of January, follows the Pentagon’s move earlier this year to cut the $15.5 million in funding for the paper from the Defense Department budget. And it is a reflection of the Trump administration’s broader animosity for the media and members of the press.
Members of Congress have objected to the defunding move for months. And senators sent a letter to Defense Secretary Mark Esper this week urging him to reinstate the money. The letter, signed by 15 senators — including Republicans and Democrats — also warns Esper that the department is legally prohibited from canceling a budget program while a temporary continuing resolution to fund the federal government is in effect.
“Stars and Stripes is an essential part of our nation’s freedom of the press that serves the very population charged with defending that freedom,” the senators said in the letter.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., in a separate letter to Esper in late August, also voiced opposition to the move, calling Stripes “a valued ‘hometown newspaper’ for the members of the Armed Forces, their families, and civilian employees across the globe.” He added that “as a veteran who has served overseas, I know the value that the Stars and Stripes brings to its readers.”
In the memo, the department says Esper made the decision as a result of his department-wide budget review. Signed by Army Col. Paul Haverstick, acting director of the Pentagon’s Defense Media Activity, the memo says plans to close the paper are due on Sept. 15 and the last newspaper is to be published on Sept. 30.
The memo adds that if the paper continues to be funded by either a continuing resolution “or other unforeseen circumstances” then Stripes must submit a plan by Sept. 15 to shut down at the end of the next budget year, Sept. 30, 2021. Haverstick’s memo says that in that case, the last date for publication of the newspaper will be determined based on budget or other circumstances.
The Stripes ombudsman, Ernie Gates, told The Associated Press on Friday that shutting the paper down “would be fatal interference and permanent censorship of a unique First Amendment organization that has served U.S. troops reliably for generations.”
The first newspaper called Stars and Stripes was very briefly produced in 1861 during the Civil War, but the paper began consistent publication during World War I. When the war was over, publication ended, only to restart in 1942 during World War II, providing wartime news written by troops specifically for troops in battle.
Although the paper gets funding from the Defense Department, it is editorially independent and is delivered in print and digitally to troops all over the world.
The Pentagon proposed cutting the paper’s funding when making its budget request earlier this year, triggering angry reactions from members of Congress.
The House-passed version of the Pentagon budget contains funding for the paper’s publication, but the Senate has not yet finalized a defense funding bill.
https://apnews.com/10bf87893e3615685895f92346601a47
---------------------------
Welcome to The Newspaper Archives of Stars And Stripes
The North Africa and Mediterranean editions (1942-1945) from World War II are now available!
This database contains over 1 million historical newspaper pages from Stars and Stripes, the independent daily newspaper of the U.S. military.
At present this archive includes newspapers published from 1948 through 1999 and editions published in the UK and the Mediterranean (including North Africa) during World War II. For current news and information, please visit stripes.com.
The full-page newspaper pages are rendered in both PDF and JPG format and are searchable by keyword and date, making it easy to explore this unique content. Because the publication history of Stars and Stripes spans several wars, its printing locations and the geographic regions covered changed with the movement of American troops. It was also published in multiple editions—as many as 35 during World War II. To gain a better understanding of this complexity, please see the Publication History section.
Stars and Stripes is likely the only independent news media in the world to operate from within a nation’s defense department. Although the organization is authorized by the U.S. Department of Defense, Stars and Stripes content and coverage is completely independent of outside control or interference. Its singular coverage of the U.S. military offers first-hand accounts of life in peace and during times of war from the service members’ point of view.
Use the archive to gain a new perspective on military conflicts and news, to research the military service of a friend or family member, or simply to read about a person or event that interests you.
https://starsandstripes.newspaperarchive.com/
AP NEWS 30 minutes ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon has ordered the military’s independent newspaper, Stars and Stripes, to cease publication at the end of the month, despite congressional efforts to continue funding the century-old publication.
The order to halt publication by Sept. 30, and dissolve the organization by the end of January, follows the Pentagon’s move earlier this year to cut the $15.5 million in funding for the paper from the Defense Department budget. And it is a reflection of the Trump administration’s broader animosity for the media and members of the press.
Members of Congress have objected to the defunding move for months. And senators sent a letter to Defense Secretary Mark Esper this week urging him to reinstate the money. The letter, signed by 15 senators — including Republicans and Democrats — also warns Esper that the department is legally prohibited from canceling a budget program while a temporary continuing resolution to fund the federal government is in effect.
“Stars and Stripes is an essential part of our nation’s freedom of the press that serves the very population charged with defending that freedom,” the senators said in the letter.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., in a separate letter to Esper in late August, also voiced opposition to the move, calling Stripes “a valued ‘hometown newspaper’ for the members of the Armed Forces, their families, and civilian employees across the globe.” He added that “as a veteran who has served overseas, I know the value that the Stars and Stripes brings to its readers.”
In the memo, the department says Esper made the decision as a result of his department-wide budget review. Signed by Army Col. Paul Haverstick, acting director of the Pentagon’s Defense Media Activity, the memo says plans to close the paper are due on Sept. 15 and the last newspaper is to be published on Sept. 30.
The memo adds that if the paper continues to be funded by either a continuing resolution “or other unforeseen circumstances” then Stripes must submit a plan by Sept. 15 to shut down at the end of the next budget year, Sept. 30, 2021. Haverstick’s memo says that in that case, the last date for publication of the newspaper will be determined based on budget or other circumstances.
The Stripes ombudsman, Ernie Gates, told The Associated Press on Friday that shutting the paper down “would be fatal interference and permanent censorship of a unique First Amendment organization that has served U.S. troops reliably for generations.”
The first newspaper called Stars and Stripes was very briefly produced in 1861 during the Civil War, but the paper began consistent publication during World War I. When the war was over, publication ended, only to restart in 1942 during World War II, providing wartime news written by troops specifically for troops in battle.
Although the paper gets funding from the Defense Department, it is editorially independent and is delivered in print and digitally to troops all over the world.
The Pentagon proposed cutting the paper’s funding when making its budget request earlier this year, triggering angry reactions from members of Congress.
The House-passed version of the Pentagon budget contains funding for the paper’s publication, but the Senate has not yet finalized a defense funding bill.
https://apnews.com/10bf87893e3615685895f92346601a47
---------------------------
Welcome to The Newspaper Archives of Stars And Stripes
The North Africa and Mediterranean editions (1942-1945) from World War II are now available!
This database contains over 1 million historical newspaper pages from Stars and Stripes, the independent daily newspaper of the U.S. military.
At present this archive includes newspapers published from 1948 through 1999 and editions published in the UK and the Mediterranean (including North Africa) during World War II. For current news and information, please visit stripes.com.
The full-page newspaper pages are rendered in both PDF and JPG format and are searchable by keyword and date, making it easy to explore this unique content. Because the publication history of Stars and Stripes spans several wars, its printing locations and the geographic regions covered changed with the movement of American troops. It was also published in multiple editions—as many as 35 during World War II. To gain a better understanding of this complexity, please see the Publication History section.
Stars and Stripes is likely the only independent news media in the world to operate from within a nation’s defense department. Although the organization is authorized by the U.S. Department of Defense, Stars and Stripes content and coverage is completely independent of outside control or interference. Its singular coverage of the U.S. military offers first-hand accounts of life in peace and during times of war from the service members’ point of view.
Use the archive to gain a new perspective on military conflicts and news, to research the military service of a friend or family member, or simply to read about a person or event that interests you.
https://starsandstripes.newspaperarchive.com/
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