NAHJ expresses concern over student press rights violations

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 30, 2023

(Washington, D.C.) – The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) is calling on Los Angeles City College President Mary Gallagher, Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) Chancellor Dr. Francisco Rodriguez and the LACCD Board of Trustees to affirm and protect the press rights of student journalists in California. 

Two incidents this month at Los Angeles City College have raised concerns over the censorship of student journalists of The Collegian, a nearly 100-year-old publication. On May 2, reporter and photographer Juan Mendoza was barred from covering a music concert at the campus honoring President Gallagher, who is scheduled to step down at the end of June. The event was publicized as open to the public, but the music department chair informed Mendoza it was a private event and told him to leave.

Mendoza, who has covered murders, Skid Row and other hard-hitting news events, did not expect to be treated this way, said journalism professor Rhonda Guess, adviser of the biweekly student newspaper. 

“He was so humiliated,” said Guess, who has been teaching at this campus since 2005. “The way people were looking at him when he left, he never felt that way in his life.”

Another incident occurred on May 19 when student Louis White, a photographer for the Collegian, was taking photos in the music building. White, who is Black, was confronted by Los Angeles Sheriff’s deputies who patrol the campus. Employees in the music department contacted deputies saying White made them feel “unsafe and threatened.” Guess described this incident as an example of racial profiling.

Guess said Gallagher, who has been supportive of student journalists in the past, should have spoken out in defense of the students’ right to do their constitutionally-protected work. 

“She didn’t speak out enough,” Guess said. 

Guess said that the student journalists and the journalism program have also faced censorship in the past. 

“California has some of the strongest student press rights in the country. But in the past year, we’re seeing administrators or school employees try to censor students and their publications or punish their advisers,” said Adriana Chavira, NAHJ’s Academic Officer At Large. “That has a chilling effect for future journalists. Working on campus publications gives student journalists a real-world experience, which should include First Amendment protections.”

Since 1977, California’s education code has upheld the rights of student journalists at public schools at both the high school and college level to exercise their freedom of speech and freedom of the press. LACCD is the largest community college district in the nation with nine accredited colleges and more than 200,000 students enrolled. 

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About NAHJ: 

The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) is the largest organization of Latino journalists in the United States and is dedicated to the recognition and professional advancement of Hispanics in the news industry. Established in April 1984, NAHJ created a national voice and unified vision for all Hispanic journalists. The mission of NAHJ is to increase the number of Latinos in the newsrooms and to work toward fair and accurate representation of Latinos in news media. NAHJ has more than 3,500 members, including working journalists, journalism students, other media-related professionals and journalism educators. For more information please visit NAHJ.org or follow on Twitter @NAHJ. 

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