Current Status: The Missouri legislature has considered the Cronkite New Voices Act several times. The legislature is in session, and SB 1172 and HB 2918 has been introduced. Join the movement by emailing SPLC’s Advocacy and Organizing Team at newvoices@splc.org.
Join the Movement
- Contact your state legislators to let them know why this legislation is important to you. Find out who your legislators are here. Not sure what to say? Check out our phone script and letter-writing tips here.
- Talk with SPLC’s New Voices Advocacy and Organizing Team (newvoices@splc.org) about ways to bring New Voices to Missouri.
Other Ways to Get Involved
- Refine your thoughts with talking points, find answers to frequently asked questions, or find other resources here.
- Locate a copy of your school district’s student media or student expression policy. This toolkit can tell you everything you need to know about your policy and what you can do with it. Some student media policies offer legal protection equal to or even exceeding New Voices protections. If that’s the case, spread the word! (And let SPLC know, too.)
- Help your colleagues better understand student press freedom by inviting an SPLC expert to join you: SPLC In The Classroom.
- Spread the word about New Voices. Enlist all your friends in Missouri to raise their voices in support of this measure, which ensures the basic First Amendment rights of student journalists and protects their advisers from retaliation.
Why Missouri needs New Voices
- Bold Journalism and Brave Advocacy: The Ongoing Struggle for Student Press Freedom. LHSToday (2-23-23)
- Stark: Missouri needs a New Voices law to protect student journalists The Standard (1-28-18)
- Messenger: Student journalists send message to school boards over COVID-19: ‘You failed us.’ (10-28-2020) St. Louis Post-Dispatch
- Lindenwood Legacy students get short notice before school cancels print budget College Media Matters (7-16-18)
- The print edition of a Missouri university’s magazine has been canceled. Editors say it’s retaliation and censorship Student Press Law Center (7-10-18)
- Podcast with Cathy Kuhlmeier Frey Student Press Law Center (10-31-16)
- PODCAST: New Voices advocates talk struggles and successes Student Press Law Center (3-14-19)
- Gay students in Missouri had their high school yearbook quotes censored by school Student Press Law Center (8-17-17)
- Missouri student journalists fear censorship after administrators request review of edgy stories Student Press Law Center (4-4-14)
- SPLC commends Missouri school district for supporting yearbook students’ editorial independence Student Press Law Center (5-22-23)
- Mo. university removes award-winning newspaper adviser Student Press Law Center (4-26-11)
- Missouri High School Students Sue School for Firing Their Newspaper Adviser Student Press Law Center (12-1-98)
- Missouri scraps student press freedom bill for third year in a row Student Press Law Center (5-21-18)
- Missouri Student Journalists, Teachers Hope Bill Will Stop Censorship By School Admins KBIA (4-4-19)
- Cronkite Act needs to pass Republic Monitor (2-15-18)
- It’s freedom of speech’: Student journalists testify for New Voices Act The Missourian (2-6-19)
- TKC testifies in support of Cronkite New Voices Act The Kirkwood (Mo.) Call (2-7-19)
- Missouri can fix the Supreme Court’s mistake about freedom of the student press The Kansas City Star (5-9-18)
- Student journalists in Missouri would be shielded from censorship under proposal St. Louis Post-Dispatch (2-15-18)
- Do not silence students News-Press (2-7-16)
History of New Voices in Missouri
- 2016: New Voices legislation passes the House but dies in the Senate.
- 2017: HB 441, sponsored by Rep. Kevin Corlew, New Voices legislation passes the House but dies in the Senate.
- 2018: HB 1940, sponsored by Rep. Kevin Corlew, legislation passes the House but dies in the Senate.
- 2019: HB 743, sponsored by Representative Craig Fishel, passed the House but did not receive a hearing in the Senate.
- 2020: HB 2317, sponsored by Rep. Phil Christofanelli was approved by a House committee but did not receive a full House vote.
- 2021: HB 480, sponsored by Rep. Phil Christofanelli and SB 434, sponsored by Senator Barbara Washington, was introduced.
- 2022: HB 1668, sponsored by Rep. Phil Christofanelli and SB 855, sponsored by Senator Barbara Washington, was introduced.
- 2023: SB 440, sponsored by Senator Barbara Washington, was introduced but did not receive a hearing.
- 2024: SB 1099, sponsored by Senator Barbara Washington, was introduced and successfully passed through the Senate Education Committee. It never received a full vote on the Senate floor.
- 2025: SB 258, sponsored by Senator Barbara Washington, was introduced but did not receive a hearing.
Endorsements
- Missouri Journalism Education Association
- Missouri Interscholastic Press Association
- Journalism St. Louis
- ACLU of Missouri
- Missouri NEA
- Missouri Press Association
- View the list of national endorsers at the bottom of this page.
Recent news
- Hoard shares three observations about New Voices in Missouri (7/16/2024) - Advocate Kellen Hoard shares accomplishments and lessons learned during the 2024 legislative season.
- SPLC submits testimony on Missouri New Voices bill (3/1/2024) - On February 28, student journalists and other supporters of student press freedom testified in the Missouri Senate Progress and Development Committee in support of SB1099, which would establish the Cronkite New Voices Act to protect freedom of the press in school-sponsored media. Students who testified included Anna Colletto, a 2023 Student Press Freedom Day co-chair.… Continue reading SPLC submits testimony on Missouri New Voices bill