Press freedom advocates hold their breath

In a move signaling interest in a case with vital First Amendment freedoms at stake, the U.S. Supreme Court has requested a response from an Illinois college administrator whose right to censor a student newspaper was stunningly upheld by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Students from Governors State University filed a petition for a writ of certorari; in essence, asking the nation's high court to re-hear the case. Attorneys for the university administrator waived their right to respond to the students' petition, according to the Student Press Law Center. (http://www.splc.org/newsflash.asp?id=1115)

The request signals that justices may believe the petition to have some merit, according to an explanation of Supreme Court practices quoted on the SPLC's Web site.

We at the Independent Register stand in solidarity with Governors State University student journalists. We support college press freedom and hope courts interpret the First Amendment faithfully and defend it doggedly.

For more information, visit the SPLC Web site at www.splc.org.