Sunday, March 13, 2005

Public editor: When students try journalism, faith in press increases

Lindsey Pendergrass trusts the government more than she trusts the press. That's why she doesn't believe that newspapers should be allowed to publish everything without government approval. "The press just wants to print something that people will buy," she says. "The government has to be true to the public."

The Gresham High freshman is not uncommon in her view of the roles of the press and the government. About half the students who responded to a national survey about the First Amendment disagreed that newspapers should be allowed to publish freely without government approval of a story. When The Oregonian mounted an informal survey of readers, about one-third of students disagreed with full freedom of the press -- twice the rate of adult readers.

The findings are in stark contrast to the goals of Sunshine Week this week, when journalists are trying to raise awareness about the public's right to access government information. A significant number of students actually would let government control the content of newspapers.

Full Story:
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/public_editor/index.ssf?/base/editorial/111053935253810.xml


Informant: Dani Djinn