http://www.thenewstribune.com/2010/05/24/1198394/school-journalists-decry-censorship.html
Student journalists for the school newspaper at one of the high schools in Puyallup, WA are protesting a regulation that requires student work be previewed by a principal before publication. The students have given examples where parts of their stories were altered or deleted. School officials claim that due to a prior incident that created a lawsuit (they won, but must pay legal fees), they must have the final say in the school articles. The district is financially liable for any lawsuits that are incurred from student publications. Because of the new regulations, some of the student journalists are now self-censoring because they are afraid of offending others.
I feel bad for the kids at these newspapers. I understand that they want to be able to do high quality work that impacts their readers. They are trying to do stories on issues that other teens want to read. I think their teachers should be proud of how they are trying to fight for their case. Going to the board meeting, gathering public support (through Facebook), and creating media attention with their merchandise are all tactics that they would have to employ in the "real world". Although I understand the school district's fear of legal fees, I think they are undermining their program and failing their students. We also frequently preach to kids that doing the right thing is so important (even more than money), but we don't always back them up when they do it.
It would be interesting to know the reactions of the school and public librarians in the district and surrounding areas. Hopefully, they are providing public support. I think that we work so hard to defend our patrons' freedom to read, view, and access that sometimes we forget to defend their right of expression.
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Hi, please check the link. It directed me to a different article. Thanks
ReplyDeleteThank you! It should be fixed now. I can't get
ReplyDeleteBlogger to let me paste in the link, and I missed a number.
I agree that it isn't ideal. That being said, if the students are so committed to journalistic freedom, why don't they agree to take on legal responsibility? The district said they'd meet with the students if they agreed to it.
ReplyDeleteIs it wrong of me to think that sounds like the students wanting to have it both ways, getting the freedom to say whatever they want, but not having to take responsibility for the consequences? Part of the problem, of course, is that a student writing for the school paper doesn't have as much riding on their work as a journalist writing for the Tribune. If the journalist doesn't uphold strict journalistic standards or the editor gets lazy with the fact-checking and the paper gets sued for libel, the journo and/or editor could lose their careers over it. For the student at the school paper, this is just an extracurricular activity. Sure, it's a bummer if the school board says they can't write for it anymore, but hey, there's always debate club!
It sounds as if the district has become a little gun-shy since their suit. It makes me wonder if their attorneys didn't recommend a review as a "lessons learned" and the school is taking it a step further than the intent.
ReplyDeleteI agree some with Derek as far as it sounding as if the students want to have their cake and eat it too. Particularly those whose comments described positive relationships with the school because they did not review their work.
This is the school's newspaper, and they are the ones taking the risk, therefore they should have the final say. They are allowed to set the conditions by which messages are spread using their resources. If the students do not like that, then they should start a website, and put their stories there. Newspapers are a thing of the past anyways, information is spread via the Web, and one of the reasons is the freedom to say what you want, since resources are not a problem.
ReplyDeleteI’m never sure where the freedom of expression ends and the goals of the publishing organization begin. Every school principal will support the notion that the purpose of a student newspaper is to teach principles and processes of journalism; including the freedom of expression. However, unless you’re self-publishing on the web or your own copy machine, you are speaking for an organization. It is a good lesson in journalism to learn that no journalist is an island. You work with editors, legal advisers, and within the goals/standards set by your employer. The students’ right to publish was not denied. Their right to publish in the school’s paper was.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the common theme in these comments. It is easy to rile up students and get them all worked up about their rights being infringed upon. And I feel like it's probably good for them to take action on their stand, as so many students (and adults) are simply too complacent to rock the boat or stick up for their beliefs. Yet, I agree the students could always take their writing elsewhere, such as a website. Schools can't regulate online blogs (yet).
ReplyDeleteAs much as I want to side with the students, the school paper is part of a school sponsored class. Since it is part of a class the school has the right to set the parameters and review what is permissible.
ReplyDeleteI don't necessarily agree that a principal should be reviewing the student newspaper. Principals have so much on their plate already, that they are going to tend to err on the side of caution. The last thing they want to deal with is a lawsuit created by a student newspaper. Don't student newpapers tend to have a faculty sponsor? Hopefully it's someone with a journalism background teaching them what actually constitutes "free speech" and can stand up for the students when the administration complains.
ReplyDeleteJosh,
ReplyDeleteI just had this conversation with January (in our class). I also think that it is a waste of a principal's time to deal with this and wondered where the sponsoring teacher was when this happened. In light of the very personal content of the article, I think the teacher could have advised the students NOT to print their peers names without ruining the impact of the article. Professional journalists frequently quote sources that they do not name. It would have been a lesson in tact.