Schwarzenegger signs bill protecting school journalism advisers from pressure tactics
The
First Amendment Center reports that California Gov. Schwarzenegger signed legislation barring school administrators from retalliating against high school and college journalism instructors. S.B. 1370, sponsored by Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, makes it illegal to fire, demote, transfer or discipline school employees for protecting students' First Amendment rights.
California already has a law protecting student's press rights, but it offered no protection for their teachers. This created a loophole that administrators took advantage of to quash student speech they found unacceptable. Since 2001, twelve advisers were punished for what their students had written. That is an insidious form of censorship since it makes student journalists gun-shy, fearing that what they write may cost a favorite teacher his or her job. That may be the kind of journalists certain politicians want to see, but not the kind who truly serve the public by speaking truth to power.
Thanks to Yee, California student journalists got additional protection, and school administrators were reminded that the First Amendment applies within their schools.