Editors under fire

When criticism and scrutiny hit the newsroom, it is the editor who absorbs much of the flak. Keeping a cool head -- and having a little media savvy -- is important when hoards of protesters are calling for your removal, collegiate press experts say. But having a good understanding of school speech policies, your publication board's bylaws and the law might help more when fighting to keep your job.

Board at Colo. State considers changes to publications policy

Following a well-publicized and controversialnewspaper editorial criticizing President Bush, a publications board at a public university in Coloradois considering revising its bylaws to allow newspaper staffers to be punishedfor publishing what the board deems indecent material.Currently, thebylaws governing the Board of Student Communications at Colorado StateUniversity at Fort Collins say officials cannot "censor or punish theoccasional use of indecent, vulgar or so called 'four-letter' wordsin student publications."