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 find in the high school newspaper
Today, I took some time to read three online high school newspapers. Take some time and you will discover some great things in high school newspapers. Check out Pelladium (Iowa), The Hillel Periscope (Florida) and Neirad (Connecticut) to see what is on the minds of teens. What I discovered was deligthful, thought provoking and intelligent….
Give yourself the gift of time…for learning
“You can’t teach what you don’t know.” It’s something my friend and mentor Tony Willis used to say, and I couldn’t agree more. The responsibilities of a journalism adviser get bigger and more complicated by the minute as we watch the constant changes in media and technology. There’s so much we need to know in…
An open discussion about online ethics. Please join in.
As more student media embrace what some call the “fifth estate” – new and social media – as part of their way to keep their audiences informed, student journalists may think they need new legal and ethical guidelines. Will existing guidelines, the heart of the fourth estate, still have a role? Will new hardware and…
Illinois paper calls for public discussion of issues at Stevenson High
The Pioneer press, local paper for Lincolnshire, Illinois, today editorially called for public discussion of the issues surrounding censorship of The Statesman at Stevenson High School. Last spring, the paper had editorialized against the students. “Now is the time for Stevenson administrators, faculty and students to share their opinions and hear from people with diverse…
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.