Press Rights
JEA stands firmly behind student journalists’ press freedom. Where journalism students delve into the impact of such events as the invasion of the Capitol Jan. 6 and issues stemming from it, they create community engagement and understanding of journalistic responsibility, roles and values. Where the same students make final decisions of content without prior review and restraint, democracy’s ideals flourish and expand. We denounce all efforts to stifle student journalists, and we stand in solidarity with advisers who support them.
Constitution Day is Sept. 17
2025 Theme: Power to the People
The Scholastic Press Rights Committee has put together a set of activities and materials around the 2025 theme "Power to the People" for teachers to use in their classrooms this Constitution Day, Sept. 17. They range from full lesson plans to quick activities and ways to promote Constitution Day in your school community.
Press Rights Quick Links
Prior Review | Law-Ethics Manual | Key Cases | What Are Ethics | Tools of Truth
What you don’t know COULD hurt you
by Candace Perkins Bowen, MJE Recent applications for the First Amendment Press Freedom Award revealed some knowledge gaps. Perhaps it’s not surprising that school principals couldn’t define unprotected speech on the forms each school submitted. So often media advisers and student publication staff members have to do a little educating of their administrators. But a…
What does your social media strategy say about your publication?
By Megan Fromm, CJE Today’s student journalists are increasingly taking to social media to promote their work and network with other publications. However, many scholastic publications do not have a social media strategy that is both ethical and effective. We’ve covered the basics of an ethical social media policy, and I would encourage students to take this policy…
Ferguson incident sparks youth summit documentaries
Living in St. Louis, Mo., during the past year has been very difficult, especially if your school is near Ferguson, Mo., the site of much violence and after the shooting death of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teen in that community. Student journalists at Ritenour High School, have chronicled how the community has risen up…
Making points; not just giving them
by Stan Zoller, MJE A recent series of posts on the JEA Listserv piqued my interest more than others. The topic was news quizzes. What intrigued me was the discussion about not the quality of the news quizzes, where they are available and how they are being used. There was also discussion about using them…
Need help with a censorship issue? You found it.
If you are a JEA member or students of a JEA member who need assistance concerning censorship issues, use the panic button below to generate an online form to explain your situation. This will go to a Scholastic Press Rights Committee member who will assist you quickly and notify others in your state so they can offer assistance. This outreach capability is a direct result of JEA’s Adviser Assistance Program and is designed to combat censorship issues advisers and students might face.