Censorship Battles Play out in Student Theater Productions
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Censorship battles play out in student theater productions INSIDE: TINKER TOUR HONORED IN WASHINGTON, D.C. AS SPRING TOUR OF SCHOOLS WRAPS UP A MESSAGE FROM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FRANK D. LOMONTE SPLC marks four decades of The Student Press Law Center Report (ISSN 0160-3825), unleashing captive voices published three times each year by the SPLC, summarizes current cases and controversies involving the rights of the student press. Forty years ago, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author Jack The Report is researched, written and produced by journalism Nelson inspired a still-growing movement with these words: “Censorship is interns and SPLC staff. the fundamental cause of the triviality, innocuousness and uniformity that The Student Press Law Center Report, Vol. XXXV, No. 2, Spring characterize the high school press.” 2014, is published by the Student Press Law Center Inc., 1101 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1100, Arlington, VA 22209-2275, (703) 807-1904. Nelson’s 1974 book, Captive Voices, vividly captured the frustration and Copyright © 2014 Student Press Law Center. All rights reserved. disempowerment of being a young journalist forbidden from writing about Yearly subscriptions are $15. Contributions are tax-deductible. “sensitive” issues at a time of violent social upheaval in which teens had a profound personal stake. His words led directly, in the fall of 1974, to the founding of the Student Press Law Center, which is entering its fifth decade as the strong right arm of the student media in all of its evolving forms. There is a direct line between the now-middle-aged journalists Nelson met across America in 1973 and today’s newspaper staffers at Neshaminy High School in Pennsylvania, who are facing persecution for a principled stand against the use of “Redskins” as the school symbol. As this magazine goes to EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Frank LoMonte press, student editors at The Playwickian are facing a witch-hunt disciplinary ATTORNEY ADVOCATE: Adam Goldstein probe – and even murmurs of felony charges – for the “crime” of publishing a PUBLICATIONS FELLOW: Sara Gregory newspaper without printing a concocted letter-to-the-editor planted by their JOURNALISM INTERNS: Lydia Coutré, Casey McDermott and Rex Santus school board to bait them into removing the incendiary mascot name. COVER PHOTOGRAPHS: Casey McDermott These young crusaders are carrying on the tradition of truth-telling COVER DESIGN: Adam Goldstein journalism about difficult civil-rights issues that Jack Nelson himself exemplified in a 60-year career that began at The Biloxi Daily Herald while he was still in high school. When Nelson died in 2009, he was eulogized by CORPORATE BOARD OF DIRECTORS a colleague who remembered him as a hard-nosed journalist blessed with Organizations for identification purposes only “by far the greatest sense of right and wrong of any reporter I’ve ever seen, Patrick Carome and the greatest sense of outrage.” The capacity to recognize, and call out, WilmerHale l Washington, D.C. (chairman) outrages is peculiarly the province of the young. What is clearly heard, Kevin Corcoran sharply observed and deeply felt becomes fuzzy and indistinct with age, for Lumina Foundation | Indianapolis, Ind. all but the rare Jack Nelsons among us. Jane Eisner On October 16, 2014, supporters of a free and courageous student press Editor, The Forward | New York, N.Y. from around the country will gather at the National Press Club to mark the Susan Enfield Highline Public Schools | Burien, Wash. SPLC’s 40 years of service to our shared priorities. Fittingly, the keynote speaker will be Barton Gellman of The Washington Post, best known for Marie Groark Get Schooled, I nc. | Seattle, Wash. his Pulitzer-winning reporting on government surveillance practices based Sommer Ingram on documents leaked by Edward Snowden – but also notable as the editor- Georgetown University Law Center | Washington, D.C. in-chief of The Town Crier at Philadelphia’s Washington High School, who Andrew Lih took his school to court over the confiscation of an October 1977 issue that American University | Los Angeles, Calif. featured stories about birth control and teen pregnancy. There is no more Ted McConnell appropriate torch-bearer for the flame that Jack Nelson ignited. Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools | Washington, D.C. Sponsors of the event include: WilmerHale LLP; Education Week; Hearst Laura Lee Prather Corporation; Levine Sullivan Koch & Schulz, LLP; Davis Wright Tremaine Haynes and Boone LLP | Austin, Texas LLP; and the McCormick Foundation. There’s still time to become a sponsor Geanne Rosenberg at levels starting at $2,500 by contacting [email protected]. CUNY—Baruch College | New York, N.Y. Financially, the event will help build a “war chest” for the Student Press Ernest Sotomayor Law Center to better respond when press freedoms are threatened and access Columbia University | New York, N.Y. to government information is squelched. As importantly, the event will help Mary Stapp focus the nation’s attention on the urgency of building more inclusive and Educator | Washington, D.C. transparent schools where every voice is valued and respected. To be part of Mark Stencel the celebration – and of finishing the assignment Jack Nelson entrusted us Author | Washington, D.C. with – get your ticket at: https://www.splc.org/store.asp. Nabiha Syed Levine Sullivan Koch & Schulz, LLP | New York, N.Y. 2 REPORT w SPRING 2014 INSIDE THIS ISSUE IN BRIEF PENNSYLVANIA — Neshaminy High COVER STORY School administrators confiscated copies 14 Rent Control of the student newspaper’s final issue Nationally, student theater productions are frequent targets of of the school year after student editors censorship, as student directors of “Rent” and “Sweeney Todd” printed the paper without the principal’s recently learned. In both cases, students appealed to the community approval. Editors banned the word “Redskins” (the school’s mascot) last fall, to defend their right to perform, and ultimately were successful. but the school says they must use the By Casey McDermott word. At issue in the final edition was a letter to the editor that used the word, which students wanted to redact but HIGH SCHOOL COLLEGE which the principal said must be printed 5 Lit up 27 Unintended effect in full. Ultimately, editors removed the Following legalization in two states, To comply with the Affordable Care letter to the editor entirely. students are increasingly interested in Act, some colleges are considering writing about marijuana use — to the capping the number of hours NEW JERSEY — After a three-month concern of some administrators. student journalists can work. censorship battle, a student journalist’s article about grievances filed by 9 All together now ACCESS teachers against the school district’s Policies that ask school board 18 Restricting reporting superintendent was published. When members to refer questions to a sole College newspaper editors say the story was first censored, the student member are becoming more common media relations offices frequently set journalist appealed the decision to the in the interest of appearing united. up roadblocks that hinder reporting. school board. She received an okay to publish just in time to meet the FIRST AMENDMENT FOI sinkhole 21 newspaper’s final deadline for the year. 27 On the road Current and former student editors at Mary Beth Tinker and Mike Hiestand Florida Atlantic University’s student GEORGIA — Student deejays at concluded their tour of America newspaper say it’s getting harder and Georgia State University’s WRAS Album during the spring leg of the Tinker harder to get records and information 88.5 were shocked to learn that the Tour. In May, the pair were honored from the university. university signed a deal to give the by the Hugh M. Hefner First station’s daytime programming to Amendment Foundation for their 24 Numbers game Georgia Public Broadcasting. The start Colleges’ disciplinary statistics can be work speaking with students about date was ultimately pushed back in a treasure trove of information. the First Amendment. response to protests. WISCONSIN — A prior review policy that was imposed after Wisconsin student REGULAR FEATURES journalists published a story about sexual assault has resulted in censorship, 4 FERPA FACT editors say. Most recently, students were Fact-checking the use of FERPA to deny access to public records. told to edit or remove parts of stories 6 UNDER THE DOME about teenage pregnancy, students’ North Carolina legislators and the state’s governor have approved a new law reaction to the censorship debate and that will make private school police records more accessible. homosexuality. GEORGIA — The state attorney general’s 29 ON THE DOCKET office asked a judge to order a student A former Michigan high school student is suing his school district for access to school board meeting minutes showing which students were expelled. journalist to remove public records from his blog. After outcry from the Society of 31 LEGAL ANALYSIS Professional Journalists, which asked How the law of publishing applies to social media. its members to post the public records in question on their own websites, the motion was withdrawn. SPRING 2014 w REPORT 3 FERPA Fact FERPA Fact is an SPLC project to fact check the use of FERPA — the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act — when denying access to public records. Sometimes, the records are legitimately protected by FERPA. Sometimes the records are protected by other privacy laws. And sometimes, schools just don’t want to release the records. After The Williams Record that releasing college students’ home THE ARNE METER @ published a woman’s account of the way addresses is a violation of FERPA, the university handled a 2012 report FERPAFACT.TUMBLR.COM which (if you get caught) carries the that she had been sexually assaulted by worst-case downside of a nasty warning a fellow student, students and alumni letter from the U.S.