NSCS mulls over draft protection policy for student journalists

The Nebraska State College System Board of Trustees is mulling over a new draft policy that would protect student journalist from being censored by college administrations.  

“We don’t really have anything in policy that specifically addresses freedom of speech as it related to student media,” Turman said. “In light of that fact, we thought it would be best to consider establishing a policy that could address it and be in alignment with what may be state statutes down the line.” 

Right now, there is no final draft of the policy that is ready to be put before the Board of Trustees, according to NSCS Chancellor Paul Turman. The system office is waiting on the progress of LB88, The Student Journalism Protection Act sponsored by Senator Adam Morfeld, District 46, Lincoln, in the Nebraska Legislation.  

“We would certainly wait for the pending legislation to work its way through the legislature this year because they still have opportunities for amendments and changes that may occur,” Turman said. “It may be improved by the legislature and then be vetoed by the governor. There are still a lot of things at play.” 

At the college level, LB88, which is set for a public hearing at the state Capitol building in Lincoln on Friday at 1:30 p.m. Central Standard Time, is a preventative measure intended to protect public colleges and public universities from a 2005  7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Hosty v. Carter that gave college administrators the right to censor student media in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.  

It also protects students at the public high school level from the Supreme Court’s 1998 Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier decision that gave high school administrators the right to censor student media as well as protecting advisors from retaliation for protecting their students First Amendment rights.  

“I think, had Senator Morfeld not brought legislation the two bienniums, this may not be a topic,” Turman siad. “It’s raised questions on our campuses and policies or guidelines help put a palce of emphasis for people to go to to understand how a state law or potential state law impacts what we should and should not be doing on our state campuses.”

The draft policy closely mirrors the language of the bill, Turman said. If the bill was to become law, the policy would be updated to comply with the terms and be broader then the terms of the law.