The Seventh Circuit of the U.S Court of Appeals has given university administrators the opportunity to censor college student newspapers, and the censorship could go further than that.
In Hosty v. Carter, the court ruled that the Hazelwood standard of prior review, which was traditionally only applied to high schools, could be applied to colleges under certain circumstances. Indiana is one of three states included in the Seventh Circuit, so the court's decision hits home for Ball State University.
While newspapers may be the most common attractor of censorship, students outside of the journalism world should also be concerned. Administrators may be able, if they want, to censor anything that is school subsidized, Mark Goodman, Student Press Law Center executive director, said.
"This decision gives college administrators ammunition to argue that many traditionally independent student activities are subject to school censorship," Goodman said in a released statement. "I fear it's just a matter of time before a university prohibits a student group from bringing an unpopular speaker to campus or showing a controversial film based on the Hosty decision. Such actions invite havoc on college campuses."
While the court has ruled in favor of one college, that does not mean all colleges and universities must call for censorship. In fact, administrators at Ball State and other schools can -- and should -- do the opposite by recognizing that a free press exists on their campuses and live up to that commitment. They should also recognize that student organizations have the same freedoms college publications do.
Students and alumni can encourage administrators at universities to do just that by calling or writing letters expressing the need for a free press on college campuses.
For now, the effect this ruling has on Ball State's campus should be minimal or nonexistent. However, as with most things in life, we should not take anything for granted.
The university has a policy that allows for an open marketplace of ideas, and hopefully that tradition will continue.
College is a time for students to explore beliefs and find out where they stand on many issues, so when the free marketplace of ideas is challenged, the only people who suffer are the students.
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