Nebraska high school student publishes censored article

First posted March 15, 2023 11:47am EDT
Last updated March 15, 2023 11:47am EDT

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Photo: Andrys Stienstra

After a Nebraska student’s piece on racism in her community was censored by her high school newspaper, she submitted her story for publication in the local newspaper.

Key Players

Sophia Walsh was the editor in chief of The Bulldogger, the student-run newspaper of North Platte High School in North Platte, Nebraska, a small city that leans very conservative, and she also writes for her local newspaper, The North Platte Bulletin.

Jessica Mathieu is a student at North Platte High School who stole a Confederate flag from another student’s vehicle.

Lori Larson is a journalism teacher at North Platte High School and the faculty adviser for The Bulldogger.

Scott Siegel is the principal of North Platte High School. 

Further Details

After Mathieu stole a Confederate flag from another student’s vehicle in September 2020, she stated on social media that she did so because she felt it was unwelcoming, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)

“I know what I did was wrong, but what you’re doing is worse. You’re making people at your school feel like they’re not welcome,” Mathieu said.  

With her own social media statement as evidence against her, Mathieu was charged by police with criminal mischief and unjust stealing.

Walsh decided to pursue the story, as she felt it was emblematic of familiar patterns at North Platte High School. She produced an in-depth article documenting numerous incidents of racism at her school — including white students’ use of racial slurs, insensitive comments and actions in response to the death of George Floyd, and weekly gatherings to fly Confederate flags in the school parking lot.

To establish other students’ discomfort with similar incidents, Walsh interviewed classmates and referenced a student-created petition to ban Confederate flags on the school’s property, which at least 500 people had signed by February 2022.

Upon submitting her article to Principal Siegel, Walsh said she received extensive editing notes, which she attempted to address. But after a second round of edits, Walsh said the administration began to stonewall and censor her. 

“We searched the story and made sure we credited our sources and made sure to back up what facts we had with credible sources,” Walsh said. “Then [Siegel] asked us to share our interview files with him, which we did not.” 

Because Walsh felt she had addressed Siegel’s edits and done careful fact-checking, she continued to press the administration. Eventually, her faculty advisor, Larson, was called to meet with Siegel.

After meeting with Siegel, Larson became reluctant to publish the article, seemingly worried about her employment status. According to SPLC, Larson appeared shaken, and Walsh stated she seemed “to feel scared about where she was job-wise, and made her visibly more reluctant about the story.” Larson then told Walsh that the article was no longer “timely,” suggesting she should “move on.” Walsh had turned in the article for review three weeks earlier.

Outcome

Walsh takes matters into her own hands

With Siegel and Larson now both against publishing the article, Walsh took action elsewhere. In October 2020, Walsh approached George Lauby, her editor at The North Platte Bulletin, who thought her article was newsworthy and well reported.  

On Oct. 10, 2020, the article went to print.

Principal defends actions

In an email to SPLC, Siegel defended his actions. 

“In this instance,” wrote Siegel, “there were multiple errors and non-factual statements that were addressed with the staff member overseeing our journalism department. Instead of addressing these concerns, the staff member decided to not move forward with the articles. Had said articles been resubmitted after addressing these concerns, they would have been approved.” 

Siegel also cited Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier, a 1988 Supreme Court case that gave public school administrators the power to restrict and censor student journalists.