Show v t y s 's SO WHAT fri r l to toWell wk to a- a aWell Well hello guess guess its it's a good time to lay a little facts on you due to some of th the questions questions questions ques- ques that have been raised concerning our student pub- pub rI 1 1 Ica t. t Ion I Someone slid a publication v into my mail box titled THE f SCHOOL LAW NEWSLETTER NEWSLETTER NEWSLETTER M TER and upon reading it I find that some very interesting interesting interesting interest interest- ing happenings have taken place in the courts with regard regard regard re re- gard to student publications These bits of into may help to clear up the debate as to the amount of censorship legally legally leg leg- ally available to use on student student student stu stu- dent publications when they become controversial Now as far as the criticism criticism criticism cism and I might add t threats that POINTS WEST has received because e of somI some som t I previously published cartoons car car- cartoons cartoons car car- consider the case Pa- Pa Us The University ty of Missouri 93 S S. S Ct 1197 1973 as s dec decided ded by the UNITED I STATES STATES STATES' SUPREME COURT After a hearin hearing a gr graduate student was ois- ois smisse sl s- s l missed for or distributing newson news news- ms apers on campus w which IC a al al- al ege y included OBSCENE LANGUAGE and a cartoon de depicting a policeman raping t t the e STATUE OF LIBERTY IT r c and the Goddess of Justice t The su supreme e court reversed I the e cour court o 0 of appeals decision r and ruled in favor of the stuL stu stu- stu- stu L dent So again I ask ask- you How Howe e much censorship power f LEGALLY do I actually have Seems to me that I 1 would have to have a pretty r good reason to delete a cartoon carI cartoon car car- I to toon n or article from p publication tion even if it was going to toi l i F f offend f offend f d some So in an effort to cover myself plus offer protection to the editors of the future I asked for a list of procedures and or regulations that the Points West editor is to fol fol- fol- fol low I made this request in behalf of you students and for your rights to a free uncensored uncensored uncensored student publication See if we can get these all too frequent invisible type rules niles and social Mores down on paper then we can poke the necessary and legitimate legitimate legitimate leg leg- holes in them Without Without Without With With- out a written list I officially have very few guidelines and lots of rope Oh incidentally I asked for this list or and-or guide guidelines ines from those very people who expressed concern concern concern con cern for our selection of car cartoons in Points West and I left the meeting with the impression that I r would re receive receive re- re the same Oh yeah for your information those people present at the me meeting meeting meet meet- ting t- t ing where this took place were Pres Nelson Vice Pres Doc Hansen De Dean of Students Larry Christenson Faculty advisor to Points West Loretta Walker from the Administrative Office of PR Ron Ollis and the College College College Col Col- Col- Col lege Center Director and Student Advisor Curtis Curtis Curtis Cur Cur- Smout I guess now all we can do is patiently await our governance document from the he administrative powers powers powers pow pow- ers that be Ah yes and then it was that an outright refusal refusal re re- re- re r sal by myself to comply with this invisible censorship censorship censorship censor censor- ship could and most probably probably probably ably would result in a shutting shutting shutting shut shut- ting down of our funds by the administration I presume who knows maybe the UTAH STATE BOARD FOR VOCATIONAL TECHNICAL L EDUCATION would try it It really doesn't matter since i X IX i thi this matter 11 6 has as also p passed r the gavel in the courts CASE IN POINT Joyner vs Whitin cir 1973 In 1973 the Fourth Circuit overturned a district court decision which upheld the President of North Carolina Central University in his s refusal refusal reusa re re- re- re usa to continue to provi provide e efu fu funs funds as to its ori orr en e student news newspaper a ere The e cour court found oun the e denial enla 0 of funds as to be censorship and therefore unconstitutional and illegal al Ah how interesting it can be when we check in with the thereal thereal thereal real world out there and see just exactly what shape our rights are in LEGALLY Best I can see it every time you do something different and somewhat controversial you will receive your share of the but its it's also nice to know where you stand legally especially when you find out after the fact that you were on the right or at least protected side Heres Here's another one concerning concerning concerning con con- our right to get it t on and sound off in a student student student stu stu- stu- stu dent paper sponsored public forum Tru Trujillo lIo vs Love 1971 In 1971 a federal e era dis- dis district dis district s 's court court ruled that the fact that community college officials officials officials of of- had labeled the student student stu stu- stu- stu dent newspaper a teaching teach teach- teaching ing too tool an and ana a window through w which c to view the S school hool was incorrect and that in reality it was a it forum for expression for the students students stu stu- stu- stu dents and that officials may not then place lace limitatIons limitations limita limita- ions u upon the ne use of that forum w which c interfere with the protected protect Freedom of Speech an and Freedom of the e 1 Press ress So again I sa say if you dont don't like some of our attempts at offering you a paper come and register complaints with us Dont Don't go and try some of of- strong arming cause causee its it's useless as I will press any attempt at censorship into court if it comes to that or should I say before I allow any of our freedoms to be wrongly taken away Anyway to those of you who may still be feeling creative creative creative crea crea- tive draw us up a cartoon or ordo ordo ordo do us an article or sound off editorially cause I can promise promise promise prom prom- ise you that as long as I can I will see to it that tha tit it is pub pub- Without legal justification justification justification cation I shall not CENSOR GOT IT GOOD Now ow to touch on another soft spot for a bit I was thumbing through gh this legal news here and I stumbled across some very interesting information concerning tha ever-elusive ever teacher student-teacher evaluation Since its it's obvious that it is legal to have this type of evaluation tion I wanted to show you ONE of the ways in which it could be claim legally used as a lever or at least a reser reservoir of information for forthe forthe forthe the Green student Then m maybe you could see the value in this and help us get this instituted her herat at SL Case in point Article STUDENT NEWSPAPERS MAY START TREND from the School Law Newsletter Vol 7 No 3 3 At the University of Washington Washington Washington Wash Wash- ington the DAILY DAIL Y recently won a court battle to publish FACULTY EVALUATIONS At the theU Univ v. v of Maryland the Diamondback recently ran an expose listing the grades of basketball players who wh face academic ineligibility Reactions were what one might expect U U. W W. officials argued that the disclosure invaded invaded invaded in in- the privacy of faculty members embers but they chose not to appeal the decision U. U M. M students however filed a 72 million lawsuit claim i i f t i ing an invasion of privacy and the intentional infliction infliction infliction tion of mental distress Regardless of the outcomes outcomes outcomes out out- comes these two student newspapers may well be charting a new course for other student journalists Targets for publication in th the future at your institution could be 1 Faculty Staff Salaries 2 names of of- employees employees employees em em- who moonlight 3 Faculty evaluations 4 hours actually worked each week by each member em er of the staff faculty-staff 5 academic academic academic aca aca- demic records of faculty and administrators and 6 the class drop records for each ch faculty member For years such information information information tion in education has been cloaked in secrecy The consumer consumer consumer con con- sumer movement the First Amendment and student newspapers may well change all of th that t. t Dr Joseph Mills Gaston College editor the school law newsletter Oh man look at all the possibilities possibilities pos pos- that are there We haven't even tapped the well yet Can you imagine the reaction we would get we tried that sort of thing here in UTAH Well dont don't get to awful comfortable who knows We may yet But for now you better etter put this down and get to that class on time or you'll have to get some more permission from the man to get back to class It still gets hard sometimes sometimes sometimes some some- times to really feel like Im I'm going to college One thing tiling is for s sure e though we are doing a newspaper You never never know which way its it's gonna go and because you red rednecks necks hate it and because I believe in it P Peace ace F. F Lee Wilbur VP V.P. in charge of Publications |