The First Amendment rights of student journalists in Missouri were thrust into the spotlight after a controversy received national attention in November 2015. At the University of Missouri-Columbia campus, a student journalist attempted to cover a protest, but a professor “physically and verbally” prevented the student from proceeding.
Referencing the November incident and a second example of a Missouri high school that censored student journalism in the 1980s, Republican Representative Elijah Haahr introduced a bill in February 2016 that would prohibit outright administrative censorship of student-run publications.
“In both instances, as the nation looked toward Missouri, our state was portrayed or perceived as being on the side of restraint, of penalizing and preventing the same speech rights of student journalists that professional journalists enjoy,” Rep. Haahr said.
The bill, dubbed the Walter Cronkite New Voices Act, aims to protect student journalists’ right to exercise freedom of the press in school-sponsored media, even if the school district financially supports the publication or it is produced as part of a class. The bill prohibits school administrators from censorship of student media unless the reports are libelous or slanderous, invade privacy, or cause disruption at school.
But some legislators have already raised concerns about potential conflicts that could arise due to the bill. Democratic Representative Mike Colona questioned how schools should respond to parents who would not want their kids reading about sensitive issues in the school newspaper.
Frank LoMonte, the executive director of the Student Press Law Center in Washington, D.C., voiced his support for the bill and addressed the concerns raised by Rep. Mike Colona. LoMonte said that censorship does not stop discussion of sensitive issues from taking place. Rather, the form of discussion changes from well-reported student publications to “unaccountable, anything-goes pages of Twitter.”
Rep. Colona also had concerns that the bill would allow students to publish whatever they want without adult supervision. LoMonte responded that the bill allows administrators to intervene in order to stop publication of anything that could cause the school district legal liability. LoMonte added that libelous material or material that is invasive of privacy is not protected speech for student journalists.
Bills similar to the one introduced in Missouri have already been passed in a handful of states. In August 2015, North Dakota became the eighth state to pass legislation reinforcing the right to free speech of students. Similar bills are being considered in about twenty states, including active ones in Michigan, Illinois and Minnesota.
“Missouri is the home of one of the world’s most famous and iconic journalists in Walter Cronkite, but also the home of the Hazelwood decision that saw the rights of student journalists suppressed,” Rep. Haarh said. “My hope is that we can reestablish Missouri as a place that supports the freedom of the press, and protects the rights of high school and college student journalists.”
Published on March 16, 2016.