2. Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969) December 1965: John and Mary Beth Tinker, and Christopher Eckhardt planned to wear black arm bands to school. School district heard of the plan and quickly passed a rule banning such expression. Students wore armbands and were suspended from school.
3. Tinker Students and family, with help from ICLU, sued school district. District courts ruled in favor of the school district. U.S. Supreme Court heard the case in November 1968. In February 1969, seven-justice majority Court ruled in favor of students.
4. Tinker Set up the Tinker standard — that school officials cannot censor student expression unless they can reasonably forecast that the expression will create a substantial disruption or material interference with school activities or invade the rights of others.
5. Bethel School District v. Fraser (1986) "I know a man who is firm - he's firm in his pants, he's firm in his shirt, his character is firm - but most [of] all, his belief in you the students of Bethel, is firm. Jeff Kuhlman is a man who takes his point and pounds it in. If necessary, he'll take an issue and nail it to the wall. He doesn't attack things in spurts - he drives hard, pushing and pushing until finally - he succeeds. Jeff is a man who will go to the very end - even the climax, for each and every one of you. So please vote for Jeff Kuhlman, as he'll never come between us and the best our school can be. He is firm enough to give it everything.”
6. Bethel School District Speaker, Matthew Fraser, suspended. He appeals suspension in court and wins. School district takes case to U.S. Supreme Court, which decides 7-2 in favor of the school district. Policy of restricting provocative speech did not violate First Amendment rights.
7. Bethel School District Speaker, Matthew Fraser, suspended. He appeals suspension in court and wins. School district takes case to U.S. Supreme Court, which decides 7-2 in favor of the school district. Policy of restricting provocative speech did not violate First Amendment rights.
8. Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier (1988) Students at Hazelwood East High School in St. Louis wrote stories about pregnant teens and the effect of divorce on teens. Principal objected to stories, particularly the ones about pregnant teens, saying they violated the privacy of the teens (even though subjects were given pseudonyms). Principal censors paper by pulling the spread before printing.
9. Hazelwood Students, led by Cathy Kuhlmeier, sue. They lose all the way to the Supreme Court. And they lose in the Supreme Court. Byron “Whizzer” White: “ We hold that educators do not offend the First Amendment by exercising editorial control over the style and content of student speech in school-sponsored expressive activities so long as their actions are reasonably related to legitimate pedagogical concerns.”
10. Anti-Hazelwood Laws California Law pre-dated Hazelwood Massachusetts law passed in 1988 Iowa passed its law in 1989 Colorado Law 1990 Kansas 1992 Senate Bill 62 became law Arkansas law passed in 1995 Oregon law passed in 2007 Nebraska LB898 was indefinitely postponed in April 2010. Missouri has found sponsors several times in the past 20 years, but they haven’t had any success in getting a vote. Indiana is still trying to scour up legislative sponsors.
11. Could You? Would You? Should You? Your quick guide to legal and ethical issues of the high school press Kathy Habiger, Mill Valley High School Amy Morgan, Shawnee Mission West High School
12. Could You? Kansas Student Publications Act Student editors have the RIGHT and the RESPONSIBILITY to determine all content You have the RIGHT to be free of administrative and faculty censorship You are LEGALLY RESPONSIBLE for that content (yes, you could be sued)
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15. Libel (Defamation) Usually the product of careless reporting Potentially damaging information should be triple checked Truth is the only defense against a libel claim If you make a mistake, apologize in writing immediately and sincerely
16. Invasion of Privacy Certain people have limited rights to privacy: Public officials (principal, teachers, school board, student body officers, PTA president) Public figures (quarterback, Homecoming queen, or anyone who puts themselves in the spotlight)
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18. Substantial Disruption to School Nothing that appears in the publication can cause a disruption Walk outs, boycotts, riots, vandalism, revenge, violence should not be encouraged Complaints to administration do not cause a substantial disruption
19. Copyright Infringement Just because you can download it from the Internet doesn’t mean you can use it legally Applies to written works and photographs “ Citing the source” is NOT a protection Fair use allows you to use portions of works for editorial purposes
20. Obscenity Community standards dictate what is obscene and what is not Some members of your community may consider profanity obscene Establish a policy about the use of profanity in quotes or in other printed materials
21. Would You? Ethical Considerations Accuracy Objectivity Credibility Good taste Right of reply Plagiarism Fairness to all
22. Other considerations Remember your adviser Be prepared to defend or explain your decisions (“because we can” is not an adequate defense) Take thorough notes and keep them Is this the mountain you want to die on?
23. Should You? Test yourself with these dilemmas You’re rushed for a deadline. You decide to make up a quote from your friend, knowing he won’t mind, just to finish your story. What are some potential problems with this?
24. Should You? Test yourself with these dilemmas You decide to print a story in your yearbook about a senior who had a baby during the school year. Some parents are angry about it after the yearbook is distributed. How do you justify your decision to run the story?
25. Should You? Test yourself with these dilemmas A principal in your school district was arrested for possessing child pornography on his school laptop. After you publish the story about it, his attorney threatens to sue you for invasion of privacy. Can he sue you?
26. Should You? Test yourself with these dilemmas A student is angry that a photo of him cheering in the stands at the football game appears in the newspaper. He says he never signed a photo release that would allow the school to publish his photo in district publications. What is your response to the student?
