Censorship of Student Paper an Unacceptable Move by College
When it comes to America, freedom is a very important topic. Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of press, and the right to own guns are all freedoms that we as Americans know, and for the most part, love. Avila University, a catholic school, pulled a student newspaper for topics that included sex of all different kinds. In this case, the freedom of speech and press were attacked. In this case, it was a good call.
Granted, students do have a right to express themselves no matter the topic. If a student wants to talk or write about killing, the freedom of speech and press allows them to do so. The students that were involved in the student newspaper at Avila University wanted to talk about premarital sex, one-night stands, and birth control. They have the right to do so because of America’s founding fathers. The founding fathers didn’t think a student would be writing about such topics but who knows, maybe they had this planned out all along.
With that being said, there are times where it is ok to censor speech or press. For example, if a child comes up to an adult and says something mean or inappropriate, a parent or guardian can scold them and in a way censor what the child is saying. The college was in the right to censor the paper. The Catholic religion has strict rules when it comes to sex. Nuns are not allowed to get married and if you’re not married, you’re not supposed to have sex (which is a rule for most religions). So when a student led, school sponsored newspaper starts talking about premarital sex, birth control, and one-night stands, you better believe that a Catholic college is going to step in and put a stop to it. The college has a reputation to keep and with articles like the censored one, they need to do what needs to be done.
If colleges who sponsor a newspaper aren’t allowed to regulate what goes in the newspaper, what’s the point of even sponsoring it? If said college doesn’t like what is put in a newspaper they’re sponsoring, they have the right to pull it. To keep a reputation safe, sometimes drastic measures must be taken. In this case the college did what was right in order to keep their reputation safe. If word got out that a Catholic college was allowing their students to write about things almost condemned by the Catholic religion, potential students would see that and not want to go to that college. That college could be graduating extremely smart students but if a potential student doesn’t like what a college stands for, they won’t go there. Without students going, the college won’t have money and may eventually have to shut down causing a loss of many jobs. Now if the students were writing about the cons of premarital sex and what can occur with that, denying the newspaper would be a bad call by the college.
America: land of the free and home of the brave. But when it comes to some freedoms, regulation is a must. When it comes to upholding a reputation, denying certain freedoms is necessary. Think about it. Every day, we try to protect reputations by not saying things certain things. This is censorship. We use it every day to protect the way people see us. When it’s looked at that way, censorship doesn’t seem all that bad.
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