Short title

This Act may be cited as the

Stars and Stripes Editorial Independence Act of 2026

Findings

Congress makes the following findings:(1)Stars and Stripes has reported on issues unique to members of the United States Armed Forces, particularly those serving abroad, dating back to the Civil War.(2)Stars and Stripes remains editorially independent of interference or censorship from outside its own editorial chain of command.(3)A free and independent press is a cornerstone of democratic governance and is essential to transparency, accountability, and informed public decisionmaking.(4)Congress has historically recognized Stars and Stripes as an independent journalistic organization serving members of the Armed Forces and their families overseas.(5)Stars and Stripes provides unique and sustained coverage of issues affecting servicemember and veterans’ quality of life, including housing, health care, pay and benefits, family readiness, training conditions, and the long-term impacts of military service.(6)Such reporting elevates concerns and experiences that may otherwise receive limited attention, enabling policymakers and the public to better understand the lived realities of members of the Armed Forces and their families.(7)Independent war reporting and coverage of military operations demonstrate transparency and accountability to the American public regarding the human, strategic, and financial costs of armed conflict.(8)Transparent reporting on military operations and conflicts strengthens public trust by ensuring that decisions made in the name of national security are subject to informed public awareness and debate.(9)Maintaining a clear separation between Department of Defense public affairs activities and Stars and Stripes editorial operations is necessary to preserve confidence among servicemembers and military families in the accuracy and independence of reporting provided by Stars and Stripes.(10)The ability of defense journalists to operate without censorship, undue influence, or retaliation is essential to maintaining credibility, accuracy, and public trust.(11)Protecting press freedom within the defense sector strengthens national security by promoting accountability, identifying inefficiencies or misconduct, and ensuring informed debate on defense policy.(12)Members of the Armed Forces, Department of Defense civilian employees, and their families stationed overseas, including in combat zones and other remote locations, often rely upon Stars and Stripes as a primary source of independent English-language news and information.(13)Members of the Armed Forces, Department of Defense civilian employees, and their families operate in information environments that are frequent targets of foreign adversary influence operations, including disinformation, propaganda, and coordinated inauthentic behavior.(14)Independent oversight and internal editorial review mechanisms, including the Stars and Stripes Ombudsman, support accountability and journalistic integrity.(15)Congressional oversight is necessary to ensure that Stars and Stripes is not subjected to censorship, ideological influence, or political direction.

Independence of Stars and Stripes

(a)

Purpose

The purpose of this section is to codify the requirements related to the editorial independence of Stars and Stripes provided for in section 4.2 of Department of Defense Directive (DODD) 5122.11, dated October 11, 1993, and section 246.4(b) of title 32, Code of Federal Regulations.(b)

Editorial independence requirement

(1)

In general

The Secretary of Defense shall ensure that—(A)editorial policies and practices of Stars and Stripes are in accordance with journalistic standards governing United States news media of the highest quality, with emphasis on matters of interest to the Stars and Stripes readership; (B) Stars and Stripes’ editorial operations are independent of the military chain of command, military public affairs activities, or other external influences, and without censorship or propaganda; (C)the Stars and Stripes publisher remains a civilian government employee with independent professional news media experience, who manages and controls the day-to-day business and financial, operational, and administrative activities, and provides editorial oversight of Stars and Stripes; (D) Stars and Stripes’ reporters with access to Department of Defense installations are authorized to cover events or activities open to those with installation access, even though commercial news media may not have the same unescorted access; (E) Stars and Stripes is a digital-first news organization, but is also published in a print newspaper edition at a frequency and distribution determined by the publisher to best serve its readership; and (F)except as provided in paragraph (3), Stars and Stripes provides a free flow of news and information to its readership without news management or censorship from the Secretary of Defense or the Department of Defense.(2)

Prohibition on withholding of unfavorable news

The calculated withholding from publication in Stars and Stripes of news unfavorable to the Department of Defense, the military services, or the United States Government is prohibited.(3)

Exceptions

(A)

In general

Notwithstanding the requirement under paragraph (1), Stars and Stripes shall not publish original staff-produced news stories based upon classified information or publish information that clearly endangers the lives of United States personnel or would adversely affect national security.(B)

Limitation

The exceptions under subparagraph (A) may not be construed to permit the calculated withholding of news unfavorable to the Department of Defense, the military services, or the United States Government. Any security risk information shall not be withheld without concurrence from both the Stars and Stripes publisher and the relevant combatant commander.(4)

Stars and Stripes personnel

The exclusion of civilian candidates for consideration for officer, journalist, or other Stars and Stripes staff positions is prohibited.(c)

News contracting

Stars and Stripes shall not be prohibited from purchasing, contracting for, or publishing news stories, features, syndicated columns, comic strips, and editorial cartoons from commercial news media services or sources.