First Hazelwood.
Then Kell.
Now this.
Yes, it appears we have yet another case of student journalism gone awry. On October 26th, Principal Mark Hanson censored the student newspaper at City High School in Iowa City, Iowa, over an article that investigated racial attitudes*. Needless to say, this created quite an uproar amongst the community; and in particular the students who were responsible for the article [#1].
As much as I support the First Amendment in regards to student journalism, I’d like to look those students right in the eye and ask, “Didn’t you see this coming?!” Both historical and current evidence justifies what Hanson did. Here, I will outline that evidence and then propose a simple solution so that this seemingly endless cycle of censorship and controversy in student journalism will die a quick and painless death (figuratively, that is).
The golden standard of cases involving circumstances similar to this one is Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier (1988) [#2]. There, Principal Robert E. Reynolds censored two articles, one concerning teen pregnancy and the other divorce, from the school sponsored newspaper. The students involved with the articles claimed their free speech was violated but were defeated in the Supreme Court. Since the school funds the publication, they possess the authority to limit the speech in it if it appears that the institution is promoting activities that portray the school in a negative fashion in the community (as was the case here) or are illegal for high school-aged students.
The City High School situation falls under this umbrella. If the article were to remain uncensored, it could (and in my opinion, would) seem that the school is promoting certain negative racial attitudes and stereotypes. There had already been verbal confrontations between students over the article. From there, it would be a slippery slope to more racial tension, community upheaval, and possibly even violence.
But as always in my blogs, I appeal to the dissenters. So if you don’t think that Hazelwood bear enough resemblance to the City High School situation, don’t fret. Iowa state law has it covered. It decrees that “the publication of a school newspaper can't be stopped unless it contains information that is obscene, libelous, slanderous, or encourages students to break the law, violate school regulations or cause the disruption of the operation of the school.” According to Hanson, the article contained a threat to violence which, if came to fruition, would significantly disrupt the educational process. One could even argue that the verbal arguments that were already taking place were enough disruption to validate Hanson’s actions. And since race is a hot button issue no matter where you are or who is involved, I think the censorship of one article greatly outweighs the possible consequences (i.e. fights among students or the cancellation of the newspaper altogether).
At the beginning of this blog, I alluded to another student journalism debacle…that of Kell High School in Atlanta, Georgia [#3]. This is one of the many cases on this matter that fell through the constitutional cracks. An student article on homosexuality as a “reproductive error” was not repressed by neither the high school’s principal nor the school board. While the students no doubt looked at this as a victory, I see it as a major lapse in accountability on the administration’s part. The fact that neither Jay Dillon (a school board representative) nor Trudie Donovan (the principal) attempted to hold back the article shows that either (a) they are not up to date on their knowledge of the First Amendment as it pertains to a high school setting or (b) they did not want to spark any more controversy that the article itself had already created.
The solution I pose to this conundrum a simple one. In fact, it is one we already have in use here at the University of Illinois. A faculty member oversees the production of the periodical, namely checking to ensure the content is reputable. If there is an issue, the staff works and compromises with the overseer to make certain that the subject matter is not in violation of any statutes or could possibly rile up tension in the given setting. This plan still protects the First Amendment rights and creative freedoms of the journalists.
One should note that the words “in the given setting” are highly significant. One of the pillars of the First Amendment is that individuals have the freedom to express themselves in controversial ways that question the issues. However, as we’ve seen in the plethora of student journalism cases, the implication of this pillar in a middle or high school setting can bring about disastrous results. Legitimate school newspapers can turn into gossip columns and slander-filled snot rags. And in this blogger’s opinion, if the present media is so diluted and the future of journalism has come to this, we have a very bleak future to look forward to.
* The article itself was an explanation of a survey about race that had been previously published in the newspaper. The survey results indicated that that 2% of the students surveyed had an unfavorable view toward white students and 13% had an unfavorable view toward black students.
#1: http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/news.aspx?id=19238
#2: http://www.tourolaw.edu/patch/Hazelwood
#3: http://www.ajc.com/cobb/content/metro/cobb/stories/2007/10/01/kell_1002.html
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2 comments:
Free speech in high school newspapers has always been a touchy subject for students and administrators alike. The University of Illinois has a good system set up. The Daily Illini is not funded by the school. In fact it is owned by a private entity (Illini Media). This way students have a broader range of things that they can choose to write about and publish. this takes away the fear that the University may have that the ideas written in the paper reflect the views of the educational institute as a whole.
I agree that the students had to have some idea that by publishing material regarding a topic such as race it would cause an uproar. It goes back to where we started this class. The idea of the sign stating "bong hits for Jesus". Is it alright to tamper with the rights of student speech, or is it in the best interest of the school and other students for the administration to have the final say of students speech and ultimately their verbal thoughts.
I remember within my high school on several of the publications there would be a disclaimer stating that the views and articles published in the paper did not reflect those of the administration. This is also a good solution and a good compromise for schools to make. With this notice students are given a little bit more freedom to write what they wish, and the administration can breath a small sigh of relief that they will not be to blame.
It is important that school publications are not so obtrusive that they hinder the educational inexperience for other students. For the main reason that one is in school is to learn. Students need to be respectful of other students thoughts and beliefs. I think it is important to create debate and disagreements to dispute within schools, for this teaches tolerance. Free speech ultimately has that effect, provoking debate that can lead to a more tolerant individual.
Regarding Kell High School's allowance of a newspaper article critical of homosexuality you stated that principal Trudie Donovan and school board representative "are not up to date on their knowledge of the First Amendment as it pertains to a high school setting or (b) they did not want to spark any more controversy that the article itself had already created." I propose a third option-maybe they hold the first amendment to a higher standard than most school administrators and thought it better to run a controversial article than to resort to censorship.
From reading descriptions of the Iowa City article, it seems that all the newspaper did was report the results of a survey about race. In my opinion, censoring an article such as this is an attempt to try and censor reality. Nothing in the description stated that the article was critical of any racial group, it merely reported the opinions of the students. If the survey results are accurate, than article is reporting facts, as long as the article was written in an unbiased way, it would not suggest that the school is promoting certain negative racial attitudes as you stated it would. By censoring an article such as this, it seems that the school would rather downplay or ignore the racial problems that exist in their student body rather than deal with them.
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