GoKawiilStars and Stripes ombudsman Jacqueline Smith was recently notified her last day in the role would be April 28, 2026. (Defense Department)
A recent opinion column I wrote as the Stars and Stripes ombudsman began with this: “Pete Hegseth doesn’t want you to see cartoons in this newspaper anymore.”
Apparently the Pentagon also doesn’t want you to hear from me anymore about threats to the editorial independence of Stars and Stripes.
They fired me.
This happened in the coldest way possible: DA Form 3434 stated that my last day as ombudsman for Stars and Stripes is April 28. (They have to give five days’ notice.) No reason is given. But: “This action is not grievable.”
No one should be surprised that they’re kicking out the one person charged by Congress with protecting Stars and Stripes’ editorial independence. For nearly a year, Pentagon leadership has placed more and more restrictions on the mainstream media. The New York Times sued and when the Defense/War Department lost in court, instead of following the judge’s ruling Secretary Hegseth and company pivoted, finding another way to restrict journalists. The judge rejected that attempt, too.
The laser beam turned to Stars and Stripes on Jan. 15 when Sean Parnell posted on X four paragraphs announcing a “refocus” of the newspaper. Parnell is Assistant to the Secretary of Defense/War (Public Affairs); my firing notice came from his office.
Since his “refocus” post, I’ve been outspoken in my columns, media interviews, talks with national free press groups and communications with Congress about the Pentagon’s moves to take control of Stripes’ content. This administration reveals policy through social media so Parnell’s post had to be taken seriously. On the same day as the X post, the Pentagon rescinded the process in the Code of Federal Regulations that would have given Stripes legal protection from interference. Their move is illegal because there was no opportunity for public comment as required through the Administrative Procedures Act, among other violations. This sounds dry, but it’s important.
Without codifying Stripes’ operation in the Federal Register, the operating policy reverted to an outdated, decades-old directive that could be changed on a whim by the DOD. And that’s exactly what they did in an interim policy issued March 9 by Deputy Secretary of Defense/War Steve Feinberg.
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