Tag: Spring 2010

When they make you the editor of your college newspaper, one of the things they invariably forget to tell you is what to do when two truckloads of uniformed police officers show up asking to search your newsroom.

Thomas E. Rolnicki, a longtime friend of the Student Press Law Center and amentor to many of today's scholastic journalism leaders, passed away onDecember 20, 2009, at the age of 60.

After 12 solid months of prior review and administrative censorship chipping away at The Statesman, Stevenson High School's once-award winning student newspaper has become a shell of its former self.

NEOLA's one-size-fits-all restrictions can weaken high school media.

When the Lake Central, Ind., school board met to discuss a high school principal's removal of newspapers from the stands in response to an editorial mildly critical of the former football coach, the board heard a forceful argument in favor of student free-press rights from an unexpected source: Another school administrator.

It is important for student journalists to familiarize themselves with the essential investigative tool of open-records law. FOI laws provide student journalists with the opportunity to acquire interesting and useful information about public agencies' practices and policies.

When a juicy story surfaces, editorial cartoonists nationwide jump to see who can create the most tongue-in-cheek illustration. Recently, three college papers came under fire for printing cartoons critics considered offensive or insensitive. Though the law offers protection for the content of cartoons, it does not protect them from the consequences of controversy.

With the fear of school disciplinary action in the back of their minds, anonymous speech can be valuable tool for college students critical of their universities.

Journalism students around the world work hard to inform their communities and gain practical experience in their chosen field. Editors in Ireland, Canada, South Africa, Singapore and Iraq talk to the Report's Katie Maloney and share their unique perspectives on what it means to be a student journalist.

American journalism students enjoy learning about the media in a country that has relatively strong protections for a free press. But those students interested in experiencing different media systems by exploring international journalism must explore different ways to get that type of first-hand experience.