Josh Moore, staff writer for the Student Press Law Center, reports that the Missoula County Public Schools Board of Trustees will take up a controversial policy for their student publications.

According to Moore, “The proposed policy states that student publications are not public forums and that administrators will not tolerate material that is ‘libelous, obscene, invades the privacy of others, conflicts with the basic educational mission of the school, socially inappropriate or inappropriate due to the maturity level of the students, or is materially disruptive to the educational process.’”

Elizabeth Kaleva, the district’s attorney and author of the policy, told Moore that the policy would help protect their students’ First Amendment rights. However, Frank LoMonte, the SPLC’s executive director, said the policy allows too many possibilities for censorship.

Please click here to read Moore’s article.

Welcome back everyone!

I had a great time in Indianapolis last week for the annual SPJ spring board meeting.

There are a lot of great things coming to SPJ members across the country: new training videos, exciting new partnerships, and much more. The next few years will be one of the most exciting times to be a member of SPJ!

Have a great weekend, and enjoy The Weekly Index!

State courts have recognized that newspapers may withhold materials from the government unless officials make a compelling case to the contrary, a process that is supposed to play out in court in response to a subpoena. In this case there was no subpoena, no court arguments and no recognition that raiding a newspaper makes a mockery of the First Amendment. ~ The Washington Post

The Eagle, American University’s student newspaper, found themselves in a bit of hot water for a column written by a student late last month.

According to Alex Knepper’s opinion column, “any woman who heads to an EI party as an anonymous onlooker, drinks five cups of the jungle juice, and walks back to a boy’s room with him is indicating that she wants sex, OK? To cry ‘date rape’ after you sober up the next morning and regret the incident is the equivalent of pulling a gun to someone’s head and then later claiming that you didn’t ever actually intend to pull the trigger.”

Knepper gained a lot of attention on campus and from national media outlets for his views. However, The Eagle came under fire for their decision to run the article. The discussion about The Eagle’s decision resulted in a great learning opportunity for the student journalists at American University.

The paper’s staff published an editorial on March 31. The editorial said the editors “focused on whether or not this newspaper should censor Knepper’s opinions because they were controversial.” Ultimately, they decided that they should not censor a person’s opinions “based solely on the controversy they would cause.”

I am not going to say whether the editors were right or wrong to print the column. What I will say is that what an editor chooses to put in their product reflects on them. Can they walk away from their broadcast, paper, or magazine and be happy with what they put out for the world to consume? Also, it is common knowledge that people need to be exposed to a variety of views and opinions; however, that does not mean an editor should put in every editorial or column they are handed. Editors need to know where the line is, and what crosses it.

The Eagle’s staff editorial was sincere, and I feel that the paper’s decision to run Knepper’s column was in no way malicious.

Above all, this incident shows what a college media outlet is all about – preparing student journalists for the situations they will face in a professional setting. While the staff may have wished this incident never happened, I bet they will always stop and think before putting content into their product.
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Andrew M. Seaman is a senior communication studies student at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. He is one of SPJ’s student representatives on the national board and you can follow him on Twitter @aseaman06.

Happy Friday to you all!

Tomorrow is a very busy day in my part of the world. The annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Scranton, which is arguably one of the most important days of the year in Northeastern Pennsylvania, will be held on Saturday – rain or shine.

However, the celebration cannot last too long. I am leaving early Sunday morning for the Crossroads of the World. I will meet up with my fellow Student Representative Tara Puckey, and attend the College Media Advisers’ Spring 2010 National College Media Convention.

We plan to post a whole lot of news and information on the blog over the next few days about the convention. There is no better way to get my fingers ready than to type a comprehensive edition of The Weekly Index.

So, here we go…

• The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act has been viewed as an impenetrable wall to many student and professional journalists around the country. SPJ’s FOI Committee has a new guide to make that wall look a little less intimidating. David Cuillier, chair of SPJ’s FOI Committee, has a post and link to the new guide here.
• Why is it a good time to join SPJ? Well, Holly Fisher, chair of SPJ’s Membership Committee, knows why. She has a post on The SPJ Garden Center. You can read her post here. For me, joining SPJ has been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I’ve met so many new friends and connected with so many professionals that I could not imagine my career without SPJ. Also, as a student entering the ever changing world of journalism… I think an SPJ membership is the safest investment you can make. One of my internship supervisors put it best. He told me that being a member of SPJ is, “just the right thing to do.”
• The Washington Post found themselves in a very interesting situation after running a photograph of two men kissing in front of a D.C. courthouse. The picture ran on the front page of the paper after the District started accepting marriage applications from same-sex couples. Andrew Alexander, The Post’s ombudsman, blogged about the negative response from readers, and defended the pictures place in the paper. A handful of people even canceled their subscription over the photograph. Some also suggested that the picture should have been buried on an inside page. Alexander posted an update that said readers led a counterattack against the negative comments about the picture. Some said they would subscribe to the paper to fill the void left by those who canceled their subscription in protest.

There was a time, after court-ordered integration, when readers complained about front-page photos of blacks mixing with whites. Today, photo images of same-sex couples capture the same reality of societal change. ~ Andrew Alexander

• There is an unfortunate case involving the University of Kansas and The University Daily Kansan. According to an article from The Kansan, Mason Heilman, student body president, lobbied that The Kansan’s funding be removed from the media fee charged to students. The motion passed the Student Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday, which means the paper will lose approximately $83,000 next year. The paper says it is 8% of their operating budget. Heilman told the paper, “The parallel to me would be if Congress stepped in and said The New York Times is about to go under and we think they are an important news source so we are going to fund them, but then we are going to expect them to provide unbiased coverage of us.” However, the paper is reporting that this is the only cut to the media fee. I plan on looking into this a little more, and will get back to you all with what I find out. You can read the articles about this in The University Daily Kansan here and here. Update! Scott Leadingham, Managing Editor of Quill, points out that the measure must still pass the entire Student Senate on March 24. Thanks, Scott!
• Does anyone have friends at North Carolina State University? If so, send them to the newspaper office, because they need help! The campus’ 90 year old paper is in danger of shutting down this semester due to a series of unfortunate events. They need more students to get involved, and even put out a help wanted ad as an editorial. You can read the editorial here.
• The long legal fight surrounding the Medill Innocence Project may be over. The Chicago Tribune reported that the attorney for Anthony McKinney will drop the evidence obtained by the Project, even though it may help establish McKinney’s innocence. The information gained by the students at Medill was questioned and much of the material was subpoenaed by prosecutors.
• I want all professional members that stumble upon our blog to sign up to be a mentor in SPJ’s Mentor Match Up. SPJ assigns mentors to young professionals first and then starts assigning them to students. So please encourage all SPJ Pro members to be mentors for their younger counterparts. I bet many will find that the experience will be beneficial to each party. So sign up here!
• The deadline for applications is drawing near for the Ted Scripps Leadership Institute. As a 2009 graduate of the Institute, I can say that the experience is completely worth the time and investment. I met so many people, and it really helped me get my foot in the door on the national level. You can find out more information here.
• Some of us have not even had our regional conferences yet, and national already has a tentative schedule for Vegas! Can you believe it? Well, you don’t have to. You can see it here.
• And finally, why don’t you take a trip over to the link for the SPJ campus chapter of the University of Central Florida? They have a great website, and get to have their regional conference in Disney World! You can also follow them on Twitter @spj_ucf, and check out their Facebook page.

That is all for now. I will have another post up later today, and then I need to finish packing for my journey to the Big Apple. Make sure you check back for photos and videos starting on Sunday, and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter @CampusCopy.

And just to show you how important St. Patrick’s Day is in my neck of the woods… Here is Michael Scott, Scranton’s most notable resident.


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Andrew M. Seaman is a senior communication studies student at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. He is one of SPJ’s student representatives on the national board and you can follow him on Twitter @aseaman06.

Welcome to The Weekly Index!

Please forgive the minimal posts this week. The school year is back, and in full swing, but I’ve compiled a pretty good list of links to keep you busy.

• Jessica Durkin, SPJ Digital Media Committee member, has a really cool post on one of the first tablets that people hoped would revolutionize the way we read newspapers. Obviously, the tablet in the 1994 video wasn’t and instant success, but who knows? Maybe, Apple will have better luck over a decade later.
• Speaking of the iPad, here is what The New York Times had to say.
• In more related Apple news: The University of Florida said they will require some of their journalism students to buy Macs, software packages, and other equipment. I can’t say that I am in favor of it, but the students will be able to use financial aid.
• You may not have the money to start a school newspaper, but as long as you have eager young minds… anything is possible. A high school in Ohio had trouble reviving a school paper that had sat dormant for 15 years. Their answer: Blog!
• Hey, young journalists! Do you have an online portfolio? Why not check in on the discussion over at SPJ’s Generation J blog.
• The Los Angeles Times has partnered with students from USC to produce content for their homicide blog.
• A battle has been brewing between a teachers union and a student publication in Nevada. A teachers union attempted to stop the publication of an article, but it looks like the article was published today after all. Check one for the First Amendment. Also, check back for a longer post on this.
• It looks like an old printing plant from The Washington Post will be sold, but unfortunately it doesn’t look like the presses will be start back up. The University of Maryland purchased the plant, which closed last year to extend their east campus.

There are about 100 other links that I would like to share with you, but I am heading to class. I will update the post later with a few more!

Publication's Cover

College Media Advisers, Inc. recently released their annual Keeping Free Presses Free publication, which is a treasure-trove of great information for student journalists and advisers.

Andrea Breemer Frantz, associate professor of journalism at Robert Morris University and a member of the CMA First Amendment Committee, discusses her experience and thoughts on the First Amendment and private universities in “When the First Amendment doesn’t apply: Teaching free speech and press at private schools presents challenges.”

Breemer Frantz also revisits Tinker v. Des Moines, one of the most important Supreme Court cases for students in U.S. history, by interviewing Mary Beth Tinker in “Wearing our constitutional rights as we walk through the schoolhouse gate.”

Tinker, her brother John, and their friend Christopher Eckhardt wore black armbands in 1965 as a way to protest the Vietnam War. They were quickly disciplined by the school district.

As Breemer Frantz writes, “What began as a simple call for peace by a handful of teen-agers quickly developed into a precedent-setting challenge before the Supreme Court to determine just how far the First Amendment could stretch to those under the age of 18.”

The article celebrates the 40th anniversary of the 7-2 Supreme Court decision, which said First Amendment rights do not end at the schoolhouse door.

Frank LoMonte, executive director of the Student Press Law Center, discusses current and past court battles resulting from online publications and cyberbullying laws in “More students facing online censorship.”

According to LoMonte, some states have enacted cyberbullying laws with broad language, which results in “open-ended enforcement discretion that can easily be manipulated by govern¬ment officials looking to stifle legitimate speech.”

LoMonte also discusses the pitfalls of being a student media adviser in “The cost of defending students’ rights: Two advisers lose jobs for defending the rights of their students.”

The article highlights the circumstances surrounding cases of adviser abuse at Maryland’s Morgan State University and Clark College in Washington.

The publication also features a roundup of 15 college press cases through the years, an informative article on obtaining a $5,000 grant as part of the Liberty Tree Initiative, and a great article on SPLC’s Adam Goldstein answering 10,000 legal requests since 2003.

You can find the publication at the CMA website.

People who once wrote for their high school newspaper often wear the scars of censorship and prior restraint.

For a group of students at one high school in Lincolnshire, Ill., the wounds are fresh and deep.

The Chicago Tribune reported on Nov. 20 that Stevenson High School officials stopped the presses on their award-winning student newspaper over articles dealing with drinking and smoking by honor students, teen pregnancy, and shoplifting.

Stevenson High School put out a statement in response to the Tribune’s article.

“The Statesman’s publication, originally scheduled for Friday, November 20, was delayed because its faculty advisors determined that an article featuring anonymous sources discussing alleged illegal activity was not fit for print,” read the statement.

Since then the Tribune has reported that students were given two hours to put together a replacement edition, or they would fail. The students were also not allowed to remove their names from the stories, which they said were sloppily put together.

Stephanie Glassberg, a senior and staff writer told the Tribune, “We had no time to do it. It was sloppy. It was gross. It’s not what we do. It’s not our paper anymore, it’s the administration’s paper.”

So far the Student Press Law Center and the Illinois Journalism Education Association has come to the aid of the student journalists.

“We are dealing with a school administration that is completely out of control and is clearly willing to stoop to anything to shut down independent journalism,” said Student Press Law Center Executive Director Frank LoMonte in an article posted to the Center’s website.

SPJ’s Freedom of Information Committee Chair David Cuillier also has a blog post on the this case on SPJ’s FOI FYI.

What do you think about the situation at Stevenson High School? How can SPJ help high school journalists like those at Stevenson? Comment below.