Social media accounts have been spreading a claim that a former top official in the Air Force who was fired by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth earlier this year was charged with treason and sentenced to be hung by the military.
It isn’t true.
Real Raw News — a website that has been called out for spreading misinformation — wrote on May 8 that former Air Force Vice Chief of Staff James “Jim” Slife was “convicted of treason and sentenced to hang to death” by the Navy Judge Advocate General’s Corp and the Office of Military Commissions at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Snippets of the article were then spread on multiple social media accounts, Snopes reported. The fictitious report added that Slife’s capital punishment was set for May 12.
A spokesperson for the Office of Military Commissions told Military.com that the claim was inaccurate, and an expert on misinformation said the article is a sad example of how bogus stories can spread on the internet.
Ronald Flesvig, a spokesperson for the Office of Military Commissions-Convening Authority, told Miltiary.com in an emailed statement that the commission was established at Guantanamo Bay to “try alien, unlawful, enemy combatants engaged in hostilities against the United States” and that it would never be used against an American citizen.
“The Military Commissions has never tried a case against U.S. Air Force Gen. James Slife or any U.S. citizen,” Flesvig said. “Under the Military Commissions Act of 2009 and USC 948 Section 10, the commission cannot try cases against U.S. civilians.”
The Department of the Air Force also told Military.com that the claim being spread online was inaccurate. A number listed for Slife in public records did not return a phone call or text messages seeking comment.
Military.com reported Feb. 21 that Slife had been fired from his position alongside the Navy’s top officer, the then-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and several top judge advocates general for the service branches.
No reason has been given by the Pentagon for the public firings. Slife was criticized by Republicans for past concerns he raised as the head of Air Force Special Operations Command about racism in the ranks following the 2020 police killing of George Floyd, a Black man, which caused protests, riots and outcry across the country.
Shortly after the firing, Real Raw News published an article titled “Army CID Arrests former Air Force Vice Chief of Staff James C. ‘Jim’ Slife After Trump Fires Him.” The author claimed that led to Slife’s fictitious sentencing this month.
Notably, the Joint Chiefs chairman was fired by Trump, while Slife and other service leaders were fired by Hegseth.
Kris Goldsmith, an Iraq combat veteran as well as the CEO and founder of Task Force Butler, a nonprofit that trains veterans to research and counter extremism, told Military.com in an interview that the author of the Real Raw News story, “Michael Baxter,” had his real identity revealed in a 2021 Poynter story.
Goldsmith called the author of the piece “a predator” who finds enjoyment in “getting people upset.” He added that it’s important to call out that behavior.
“Americans need to start talking about sources of disinformation this way,” Goldsmith said. “This guy is not doing this simply to spread false narratives. He’s doing it because it’s clickbait, and he earns ad revenue from it.”
Snopes reported that sections of the Real Raw News article were picked up on Truth Social, X and, mostly, on Facebook.
In Real Raw News’ “About Us” section, it notes the content is “for informational and educational and entertainment purposes,” adding that “this website contains humor, parody and satire. We have included this disclaimer for our protection, on the advice on [sic] legal counsel.”
Related: Fired: Joint Chiefs Chairman, Top Navy Leader, Air Force Vice Chief, Service Judge Advocates General