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Despite prior review approval, paper is confiscated anyway
Censorship unleased its tentacles into northern Indiana recently, when assistant principals confiscated issues already reviewed and approved by the principal. The article, an opinion piece about the resignation of the head football coach, wished “only the best for the coach” but also said the change was needed. The local paper reported the assistant superintendent as…
Asking the right questions
The list of double-meaning words and “phrases to avoid” in student publications is growing by the minute. No doubt these additions and casual definitions shared come from advisers hoping to inform and protect. Nobody wants to see an adviser pulled in by the principal, harassed with parent phone calls or accused of being anything less…
Censorship stories: Student newspaper-administrator quarrels ultimately end in student resignation
By Jimmy Hibsch, Rolling Meadows High School For the past year the Stevenson High School Statesman staff has not only been reporting the news, but it has also been making it. Last January, when former Features Editor Eunice Ro published an article about “hooking up,” administrators responded with harsh criticism. The article discussed the demise…
175 years later, still lessons to learn
I love that my mom and dad still send me actual clippings from our local newspapers when they think something will appeal to me. I also love that Mom, at age 76, has now made the leap to digital media and sends me links as well. The link she sent me Thursday from The Columbia…
Let the education start here
The Feb. 11 posting on CODEWORDS, the Society of Professional Journalists Ethics Committee blog, calls for “massive public education” about what constitutes “real news” and why such content is necessary for “an effective democracy.” Author Paul LaRocque points out the “period of change” media are now experiencing will not be over soon. But now is…
He called it ‘accidental plagiarism’
Gerald Posner’s resignation from The Daily Beast offers a good lesson about plagiarism. What happens when a journalist has LOTS and LOTS of notes and a tight deadline? Is it possible to forget which words are someone else’s and which are yours? More details and links about this appear on “A lesson in ‘accidental plagiarism’”…
Stopping prior review one fight at a time
Marie Miller, publications adviser in Fauquier County, Virginia, posted this to the JEA listserv today. With censorship and prior review constantly in the news, we thought her points should be repeated to show prior review can be prevented short of court battles. Information about Miller’s situation can be found on the SPLC site and earlier…
Establishing protocol terminology
How do you handle disagreement with administrators, especially if prior review or restraint are involved? One way might be to establish a protocol, a process of discussing the situation with all stakeholders. An early step in developing that a meaningful processw is to agree on definitions. We think the following terms need to be defined,…
Join the discussion over protocols for scholastic media
Join the discussion over Twitter and the Five Freedoms Network On February 8-9, 2010, the McCormick Freedom Project and the Illinois Press Foundation will convene a group of crucial stakeholders from across the state and country with the goal of creating a protocol that will serve as a national model for scholastic journalism. The conference…
RTDNA posts online, social media guidelines
Building on its code of ethics, RTDNA released online and social media guidelines Feb. 3. Those with online sites and who use social media might look at RTDNA’s for suggestions and comparison with their practices.
Reasonable Forecasts
According to Kelley R. Taylor, Esq., in the February issue of Principal Leadership, “Courts recognize that principals are the best judges of what will disrupt their schools, but they still must provide evidence that their decisions are based on fact.” The article discusses the A. M. v. Cash case (October 2009 – U. S. Court…
Will online term papers survive a copyright challenge?
Is selling term papers online a violation of copyright laws? In case you missed the story in today’s USA Today, a U.S. district judge in Illinois has ordered the owner of R2C2 Inc. a Web-based company in Carbondale, Illinois, to stop selling term papers unless he can prove he has permission from the papers’ authors….