Ombudsman

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Mark Prendergast
S&S ombudsman

The Stars and Stripes ombudsman:

Protects Stars and Stripes’ First Amendment rights and the free flow of news and information.
Investigates allegations of censorship or news management or unequal treatment by Department of Defense officials or other military or government officials, or any attempts to undermine editorial independence.
Serves as the readers’ representative, developing a dialogue with readers and responding to their concerns and questions.
Monitors coverage for fairness, accuracy, timeliness and balance.
Writes special columns regarding reader complaints, editorial integrity and general journalistic issues.

Mark J. Prendergast, a Vietnam veteran and Purple Heart recipient, is Stars and Stripes' ombudsman. Currently a journalism professor at St. John’s University in New York, he has over 30 years’ experience with newspapers, including The New York Times and The Washington Post, and he holds a master’s degree in journalism from the Columbia Graduate School of journalism. He welcomes comments from readers, and can be reached by e-mail at: ombudsman@stripes.osd.mil, or by phone or phone 202-761-0945 in the States.

Mark Prendergast’s Right to Know blog can be found here.

Ombudsman columns by Mark Prendergast

August 10, 2009: Editors ought to keep their readers in the loop
July 31, 2009: Reporting the news with a life in the balance
June 25, 2009: Mosul unit wrong to bar Stripes reporter
June 5, 2009: Economic climate leads to a change in the weather
April 8, 2009: In the news business, it’s nothing personal
April 3, 2009: The perils of not giving credit where credit is due
February 18, 2009: Battle brews over 1st Amendment on the battlefield
February 6, 2009: A changing of the guard at Stripes’ ombudsman post

Ombudsman columns by David Mazzarella

January 15, 2009: Stripes’ past and future: Serving readers first
January 11, 2009: Money shifts didn’t affect the news
December 23, 2008: Usually, shady motives don’t underlie the news
December 12, 2008: Secrecy leaks are hot potatoes for all involved
November 19, 2008: Reporting on protests can be tricky business
November 13, 2008: Trudeau’s election ‘Hoo-Ah’ escapes an Uh-Oh
November 6, 2008: Restrict access? DOD shouldn’t go there
November 5, 2008: Negative reporting from Afghanistan? Deja vu
October 28, 2008: Article on online TV shows viewed as a tease
October 14, 2008: Stripes still independent in new unit
October 1, 2008: Free speech allows 9/11 theory, angry responses
September 23, 2008: Not funny: More issues with Stripes’ comics
September 16, 2008: O n balance, Stripes' coverage of McCain, Obama is equal
September 2, 2008: Military should take panel’s advice, better publicize judicial hearings
August 26, 2008: Georgia missed a front page, but coverage good
August 19, 2008: A 'menage a trois' moment in the march of time
July 29, 2008: Did Stripes sling mud at U.S. troops in S. Korea?
July 23, 2008: Examining coverage gap between Obama, McCain
July 18, 2008: The comics bring smiles ... and also frowns
July 10, 2008: Some readers ‘Prickly’ after attack on GOP
July 8, 2008: Did a Stripes article help ‘the wrong people’?
June 24, 2008: On a new Page 1 design, and other short takes
June 4, 2008: Army spouse’s sexy calendar draws jibes
May 30, 2008: The ‘art’ of writing letters to Stars and Stripes
May 13, 2008: Taking a look at effort to ban on-base Playboy sales
May 7, 2008: Agendas collide at Arlington National Cemetery
April 25, 2008: How tough was Gates on Air Force’s performance?
March 16 2008: Column is flawed, but fair comment
March 12, 2008: Let's encourage free speech for servicemembers
February 28, 2008: MRAP flap: It’s the Marines vs. the AP
February 17, 2008: On Ernie Pyle, photographed in death
February 7, 2008: Party time at Coyote Ugly: How bad is it?
January 15, 2008: The art of matching columns with cartoons
December 19, 2007: War scribes to Brian De Palma: We’re not patsies
December 14, 2007: The fuss over alleged gang signs – on Page 1!
December 6, 2007: Reporting staph infection case was right thing to do
November 9, 2007: ASY arrangement threatened Stripes’ objectivity
October 24, 2007: A general urges openness with the press
October 18, 2007: Sanchez sounds off on the press — and Stripes
September 26, 2007: There are no easy answers in the search for truth
September 9, 2007: Protect servicemembers' free speech
July 6, 2007: Taking care that articles don’t aid enemy’s efforts
June 22, 2007: Too much attention paid to two pretty women?
June 6, 2007: Quite a coup that U.S. military ‘stays in the barracks’
May 8, 2007: On the reporting of U.S. military war deaths
April 26, 2007: The difficulties of working with wire service copy
April 5, 2007: Are we at the saturation point on Tillman story?
March 28, 2007: Coulter’s column — comedy or calumnies?
March 20, 2007: Regarding Iraq, just what is the media’s message?

PREVIOUS OMBUDSMAN COLUMNS by David Mazzarella from 2000 and 2001

Ombudsman column by Reid MacCluggage

February 13, 2007: Advocate gives readers an outlet to shape Stripes

Ombudsman columns by Joseph Ungaro (1930-2006)
(Read Mr. Ungaro's obituary here)

March 17, 2006: Stripes model puts transformation into practice
March 16, 2006: Stripes describes U.S. efforts in post-invasion Iraq
March 15, 2006: Soldiers’ stories enhance understanding of Iraq
March 14, 2006: War coverage, from a distinct perspective
October 4, 2005: Opinion page has no bias, but it has no spark, either
August 17, 2005: Balance, laughs strived for in editorial cartoons that appear in Stripes
December 9, 2004: On balance, Stripes had successful campaign
September 24, 2004: Page 1 headlines during Iraq war true to mission
August 30, 2004: Stripes reporters had their own Iraq stories to tell
July 27, 2004: Iraq coverage not tripped up by the wires
June 28, 2004: Discovering whether Stripes stories cover all bases
March 25, 2004: Web article thrust money woes onto news pages
Feb. 27, 2004: Stripes grows with 'Ground Truth' series
September 22, 2003: Letters to editor are windows to readers' worlds
June 18, 2003: Newspapers better themselves when they listen first
April 4, 2003: Staffers meeting the challenge of a proud heritage
December 24-25, 2002: Servicemembers truly men (and women) of letters
November 8, 2002: Spreading the news on proper checks and balances
August 23, 2002: Stripes' access comes with rules of engagement
June 20, 2002: Strengthening a link between Stripes and its readers