Censorship of student journalism would end under Senate bill

By JASMINE WATTS
Capital News Service
LANSING— Students would have full editorial control over student newspapers and other school-sponsored media under a bill before the Senate. Sens. Rick Jones, R-Grand Ledge, Tom Casperson, R-Escanaba, Patrick Colbeck, R-Canton, and Steve Bieda, D-Warren, sponsored the bill that the Senate’s Judiciary Committee recently approved unanimously. If signed into law, the bill also would protect student media advisors from being fired for encouraging student journalists to write articles that school administrators dislike. “Victory for freedom of speech,” Jones said after the committee vote.