A U.S. Army soldier reads an edition of the Stars and Stripes newspaper while in the Green Zone, Baghdad, Oct. 18, 2007. (Brendan Mackie/U.S. Army)
Contact Jacqueline Smith at ombudsman@stripes.com
A pillar of smoke rose above an area near the headquarters for the U.S. Naval Support Activity base in Bahrain, the visible result of a missile likely flung from Iran in retaliation for the nascent war.
Stars and Stripes reporter Shannon Renfroe, based in nearby Manama, Bahrain’s capital, heard the explosion. She ran for the roof of her apartment.
“Window cleaners were working that day, rigged at the top of the building. I asked one of them how to get higher, and he led me up,” she related in an email. “When the Hilton blocked my sightline, I went over there and talked my way onto their roof as well.”
That’s how she captured the striking image, which attracted more than 1.5 million views on Instagram, an indication of not only high interest in the effects of the war, but also the value of intrepid Stripes’ journalists.
Smoke rises over Manama, Bahrain, on Feb. 28, 2026. The headquarters of the US Navy’s 5th Fleet in Bahrain was targeted in a missile attack. (Stars and Stripes)
In a story published online March 6th about two apartment complexes in Manama struck by bombs, Renfroe provided this context: “Manama is home to U.S. Naval Support Activity Bahrain, which hosts the headquarters of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/U.S. 5th Fleet. Thousands of sailors and their families live in the city. The base is one of numerous U.S. installations that have come under attack across the Middle East since the war began Saturday. Bases in Kuwait, Iraq, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Jordan also have been targeted.”
Stars and Stripes reporter Lara Korte, whose beat is the Middle East, is also covering the war, and another experienced reporter from Stripes’ European headquarters in Kaiserslautern, Germany, is likely to be assigned, depending upon how long the war goes on. Plus, journalists who cover the Pentagon and Congress write from D.C. and others contribute from around the world. Literally.
Headlines of stories published by Stars and Stripes in print and online since the U.S. and Israel began fighting Iran convey a wide range:
“‘We can sustain this fight easily as long as we need:’ Hegseth, Caine provide update on Iran Strikes”
“US submarine sinks enemy vessel for the first time since WWII”
“A captain, 2 sergeants and a young specialist: Remembering the soldiers lost in Kuwait”
“State Department coordinating military flights to evacuate Americans from Middle East”
Troops in the Middle East and elsewhere can read the full — unfiltered — picture in Stars and Stripes. But that’s not all. Because of its mission and presence, Stripes also reports on stories of importance to military families. For example, Jennifer H. Svan wrote this: “Military moms-to-be can’t give birth at largest DOD hospital abroad amid care needs of Iran war.”
And reporters dig into issues beyond the breaking news of the war. Consider the story reported by John Vandiver with the headline “‘The mother of all commando raids’: US forces may need to secure uranium in Iran, analysts say.”
Does this sound like Stripes is not reporting on “warfighting?”
I am referring, of course, to a statement posted on the social media site X Jan. 15 by Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell that began: “The Department of War is returning Stars & Stripes to its original mission: reporting for our warfighters. … (It) will be custom tailored to our warfighters. It will focus on warfighting, weapons systems, fitness, lethality, survivability and ALL THINGS MILITARY.”
Parnell’s statement said the Pentagon would “refocus” Stripes’ content. A follow-up story in the Daily Wire said the intent was to have 50 percent of the content come from the Department of Defense public affairs. Such a move would be antithetical to Stripes’ Congressionally authorized purpose to remain editorially independent.
I am raising this issue once again for two reasons. First, to demonstrate via published stories of the war that Stripes has not deviated from reporting on “warfighting.” Not now, not previously.
Editor-in-Chief Erik Slavin made this clear in a recent social media statement: “Official command information is vital; we rely on it as a source. Independent reporting plays a different role by reflecting the real experiences, questions and needs of families and service members. Those perspectives help the public and decision-makers back home understand what the community is facing.”
Two, I want readers to know that there has been no interference from the Pentagon to control the news, as of this writing. This is important to note because many believe that influence on the news has been exerted and therefore, they have canceled their subscriptions.
Here is a sampling of comments made with cancellations:
“As a veteran and longtime reader, I find this decision deeply offensive. Service members do not need cheerleading or ideological gatekeeping. They need truthful, independent reporting, especially when it is uncomfortable for leadership. Anything less is a betrayal of the trust Stars and Stripes has built over generations.”
“I absolutely have no interest in watching Stars and Stripes, one of the nation’s most reliable sources of UNBIASED news and information relating to the US Military become a part of the partisan propaganda machine the current administration has orchestrated.”
“I don’t feel like I will get balanced, unbiased news with the Dept. of Defense controlling and censoring content.”
I want to tell you that no “controlling and censoring” by the Pentagon has happened — yet.
No one at Stripes wants to lose readers. But the 106 who canceled after Parnell’s Jan. 15 statement, and mention that as a reason, are eclipsed by a slightly higher number who renewed or initiated subscriptions.
While reporting is a challenge during a war, so is delivery of the news. Stripes uses a mix of digital and print to deliver the newspaper to troops in Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar and Iraq; print distribution in Bahrain is totally disrupted, Stripes’ Publisher Max Lederer said. The carrier groups have access to Stripes on the internet and mobile app, and the bigger ships receive an abbreviated version of the newspaper.
Access to the content is at no cost to all forces and accompanying personnel in the combat areas, Lederer said.
Stars and Stripes remains committed to reporting, editing and delivering the news in wartime despite the risks and challenges. It must continue to do so with editorial independence.
