Stripes publisher headlines Bloomfield museum events

It's been a hectic few months for Max Lederer, the publisher of Stars and Stripes newspaper.

In February, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper told Congress he intended to defund the independent military newspaper. About 50% of the publication's funds come through federal subsidy, which equates to approximately $15 million a year. Wednesday, the day I spoke with Lederer for this column, was supposed to be the final day of publication based on the original timeline. Thankfully, it wasn't.

While Democrats and Republicans don't agree on much these days, the support for this military publication has been bipartisan from members of Congress. President Trump also weighed in with his support, saying the publication would remain funded under his watch.

Max Lederer

But until Congress appropriates funds, Stars and Stripes is operating on its reserves. The newspaper's federal subsidy, Lederer told me, is "virtually nothing" in a $740 billion defense budget.

Lederer, a former active duty Army judge advocates general officer who joined the newspaper in 1992, said that up until the end of World War II, Stars and Stripes was almost exclusively funded by the federal government. That began to change in 1946 when the paper started to generate revenue through publication sales and advertising. Still, he said it's not realistic to expect the publication will remain fiscally solvent on its own.

The editorial staff, Lederer told me, includes about 60 people spread out all over the world.

"We have reporters in Afghanistan, in Germany and Italy, Korea, Japan, in the United States. It's all over the place," he said, adding that between staff in Washington, D.C. and what he described as the "Pacific team" and "Europe team," the website is managed by someone 24 hours a day.

Lederer said the publication reaches more than 1.4 million readers between print, online, newsletters and podcasts.

The organization's goal is to provide news and information to military members, particularly those overseas where such content is hard to find. They also identify stories that are unique to the military.

"It's really important for people to remember that the number of people who serve in the military as compared to our total population is really pretty small," Lederer said. "They're sacrificing a lot, whether it's the active duty person or their spouse or their dependents, or a civilian employee. And we owe them a sacrifice. And that is to provide them information that makes their life better, that allows them to still be full citizens of our country and allows them to successfully operate in foreign environments and in dangerous locations. And this is one of those tools to do that. It's really important for them to feel that they're informed, and they know what's going on and what they're doing is appreciated, valued and necessary."

While the newspaper is trying to remain viable, so is the independently-run museum in Bloomfield, Missouri that celebrates Stars and Stripes history.

This weekend the museum will hold its annual Liberty Days and related fundraisers. Lederer was scheduled to participate in a reception in Cape Girardeau Friday night, attend a breakfast at the Sikeston American Legion Post 114 on Saturday, and serve as the grand marshal of the Cotton Carnival parade. He'll also participate in museum events in Bloomfield where reenactors from several military conflicts will be on hand through Sunday. A reception will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday night at the museum.

This will be Lederer's fourth trip to the museum. "It changes each time I come and is considerably different, which is really exciting," he said.

He said knowing the history of why the museum is located in Bloomfield is important. The newspaper was first published in 1861 after a union battle that took over the Bloomfield area. Additionally, it's located next to a veterans' cemetery.

If you haven't visited the Stars and Stripes Museum, it's worth your time. Not only are there framed front pages of an iconic newspaper, but it also captures much history in a relatively small space.

The museum's Liberty Days this weekend is the perfect opportunity to not only see the museum exhibits but also enjoy presentations.

Lucas Presson is assistant publisher of the Southeast Missourian.