Substack's Defamation Program Assists Reporter Sued By Pentagon Official

A defamation dispute tied to a Pentagon official has ended with the case dismissed. According to Court Watch, in January, Keith Bass, Assistant Secretary for Health Affairs del Pentágono, filed a lawsuit against journalist Jeff Stein, who runs the Substack newsletter Spy Talk. Stein had reported in January 2025 that Bass was “effectively fired” by the CIA in 2021 for poor management of the agency’s Office of Medical Services, citing sources who said the office mishandled “Havana Syndrome,” officially called Anomalous Health Incidents (AHI). A federal judge in Alexandria questioned whether Bass met the threshold for true defamation and ultimately allowed leave to refile an amended complaint, but Bass did not. The case was dismissed, and Substack said its Defender program covered Stein’s legal costs.