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Article
Student Newspapers at Public Colleges and Universities: Lessons from the United States
Education Law Journal (2013)
  • Terry L. Hapney, Jr., Marshall University
  • Charles J. Russo, University of Dayton
Abstract
An on-campus activity of enduring interest in the United States that is present elsewhere in the English-speaking world, but that has yet to yield reported litigation or academic writing in Great Britain, concerns free speech issues associated with student newspapers in higher education. Student newspapers have long occupied a significant role in their dual functions of informing members of their campus communities and as preparation grounds for future journalists. Against this background, the remainder of this article is divided into three major sections. The first part examines the nature of student newspapers and related issues while the second examines key litigation involving these publications in public institutions; these parts of the article focus on state-funded institutions in the United States insofar as the protections afforded by the First Amendment with regard to freedom of speech and expression are inapplicable in non-public, or private, institutions where most rights are contractual in nature. The final portion of the article offers suggestions particularly for readers who work in and with tertiary institutions involving student journalists. This article rounds out with a brief conclusion.
Keywords
  • College newspapers,
  • student press freedom,
  • governance,
  • litigation,
  • prior restraint-review,
  • funding
Publication Date
Spring May 10, 2013
Publisher Statement
‘This article was published by Jordan Publishing Ltd in Issue 2, 2013 of the Education Law Journal, at [2013] Ed Law 114.’
Citation Information
Terry L. Hapney and Charles J. Russo. "Student Newspapers at Public Colleges and Universities: Lessons from the United States" Education Law Journal Vol. 14 Iss. 2 (2013)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/terryhapney/1/