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FIREcondemns Penn State鈥檚 removal of student newspapers over Kamala Harris and voter registration ads
STATE COLLEGE, Penn., Sept. 30, 2024 鈥 University administrators who remove student newspapers and newsstands cannot remove their obligation to the First Amendment.
On Friday, the 果冻传媒app官方 condemned Pennsylvania State University鈥檚 removal of 35 newsstands containing copies of the student newspaper. FIREalso demanded that Penn State publicly apologize to newspaper staff and affirm that it will not censor the student press in the future.
鈥淔reedom of the press is a basic American right, and it applies to college students,鈥 said FIREProgram Officer Dominic Coletti. 鈥淧enn State didn鈥檛 just fail to uphold this right. It brazenly violated it.鈥
On Sept. 18, administrators removed newsstands containing copies of the Daily Collegian, the university鈥檚 independent student newspaper, from multiple locations across the public university campus. Three of the newspaper racks displayed an advertisement for presidential candidate Kamala Harris, and six displayed voter registration ads.
According to the Collegian鈥檚 , the university removed the papers without warning after receiving complaints from students and alumni. Later that week, a spokesperson from Penn State claimed that the Collegian鈥檚 ads violated two university policies that restrict 鈥渃ommercial sales activities鈥 by non-university groups, despite the fact that the newsstands featured advertisements in years prior.
Advertising revenue is critical to the Collegian鈥檚 survival after it faced funding cuts last year. In March, Penn State first halved 鈥 and then in July, totally eliminated 鈥 its funding of the 137-year-old, award-winning student paper.
In Friday鈥檚 letter to Penn State, FIREexplained that newspaper theft is an egregious violation of the First Amendment and often constitutes criminal activity. Public university administrators who steal newspapers are engaged in blatant censorship.
鈥湽炒絘pp官方鈥檚 message to Penn State administrators is simple: Stay in your lane,鈥 said Coletti. 鈥淵ou weren鈥檛 hired to be the student paper police. Focus on protecting student rights.鈥
Penn State ranks 228 out of 251 institutions in 果冻传媒app官方鈥檚 , the largest survey ever conducted on campus free speech. The rankings are based on a number of factors, including openness to having conversations about difficult topics, political tolerance, self-censorship, administrative support for free speech, and campus policies.
The FIRE() is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to defending and sustaining the individual rights of all Americans to free speech and free thought 鈥 the most essential qualities of liberty. FIRErecognizes that colleges and universities play a vital role in preserving free thought within a free society. To this end, we place a special emphasis on defending the individual rights of students and faculty members on our nation鈥檚 campuses, including freedom of speech, freedom of association, due process, legal equality, religious liberty, and sanctity of conscience.
CONTACT
Katie Kortepeter, Communications Campaign Manager, 果冻传媒app官方: 215-717-3473; media@thefire.org
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