Needed: Student media which are public forums
The Journalism Education Association and The Center for Scholastic Journalism are looking for more schools who are public forums for student expression.
Why? Because we have had several requests for numbers – and for schools in particular areas.
So, if your school’s student media are public forums for student expression, let us know by going here and completing the form.
For student media to be designated as a public/student forum, the school must either:
• Have a school board- or administrator-enacted policy stating students make final content decisions of protected speech*, or
• Have a student media-generated policy declaring students make all final content decisions and also indicating/verifying that practice has been in effect at least two years, and there is no district or building policy that directly contradicts that practice. During that time, no adult, including the adviser, other faculty members, administrators or publication boards have dictated or changed content.
In both situations, the advisers may, as part of the coaching process, offer advice and comment, but not make final content decisions.
* The policy can still limit unprotected speech such as libel, obscenity and substantially disruptive material, but it must give other content control to the students.
Help us show others that public forums in student media are not an endangered species.
John Bowen, MJE
Read MoreIt’s a new year – spread your reporting wings against censorship
As school begins, I can’t help but be excited about the coming year for my students.
Our newspaper, The Smoky Hill Express, has great plans to abandon the usual scholastic soft coverage of clubs and newsletter events and tackle more important news this year. In our budget are plans for features on alcohol sales to minors, our special ed students, and eating disorders.
Our yearbook, The Smoky Hill Summit, is coming off a great content year that included same-sex couples, teen pregnancy, drug use, and overcoming obstacles like prior arrests and childhood illnesses.
Every year, my kids are geeked and ready to spread their reporting wings and see how they can tell the story better than they did the year before.
But, I know not every adviser and staff share our enthusiasm. Far too many scholastic publications face pressure to stay away from these “hard” topics. And, while many advisers and staffs don’t realize it, this pressure is thinly veiled censorship.
Whenever an agent of the government – any paid employee of the public school system – tries to control the content of a student publication, either by explicit rule or casual pressure, this control is censorship.
Far too often, I hear student reporters tell me, “We could never cover that in our book or paper.”
If your publication is truly a student-run publication, then the students alone control the content decisions for that publication. Anything less is censorship.
So, as your staffs begin their training, budgeting, and reporting, make sure they know their rights. Students do not have to cave to the pressure of their administrators to produce only soft, light coverage. There is no “off-limit” topic for your students, and every story can be reported responsibly and well.
Some resources for you in this endeavor can be found on the Scholastic Press Rights Commission home page at www.jeapressrights.org and the Student Press Law Center at www.splc.org.
Carrie Faust, MJE
Read MoreWelcome back to a new school year
Watch this space as various members of JEA’s Scholastic Press Rights Commission will share news, ideas and comments starting this week. Welcome back.
Read MoreGood for discussion, even at the end of the year
Two articles today could be great ways to end your j-class – or spark discussion at the beginning of fall’s.
One, about MySpace and online speech cases in Pennsylvania, looks at the problems judges are having with free expression issues outside of school.
The other, from Washington state, raises the issues of how best to report an incident at a high school.
Great topics for discussion.
Read MoreFirst Amendment issues in the news
Those interested in the latest First Amendment incidents and issues should note the following links:
• Student literary magazine recalled, then sold with permission. See first article and then the followup.
• Racial Comment in School Paper Sparks Discipline. See this article.
• Glendale Union school’s newspaper, district battle over censorship. See the article.
• Sixth Grader’s Project About Harvey Milk Censored by School. See the article.
• Secrecy 101: FERPA applied beyond intent. See the article.
Read More