This letter, requested by University of California Berkeley's president, discusses the issues of academic freedom and responsibility raised by the controversy surrounding "The Politics and Poetics of Palestinian Resistance," a section of English taught there in fall 2002. (EV)

Asserts that at least three things can be said with growing confidence about what has happened in the academy since September 11. First, academic freedom has suffered as a result of government measures. Second, the impact of the governmental response has been less severe than many would have feared. Third, the most important and troubling…

Examines trends concerning new providers within higher education, such as entrepreneurial higher education, corporate universities, the provision of virtual higher education, and the system of competence certification in computer technology. Concludes with a brief discussion of how these new providers challenge the principle of academic freedom.…

Describes how a researcher studying the culture of heroin users decided to become part of that culture, with disastrous results. (EV)

Discusses the increase in censorship of student press over the two years since the Supreme Court decision in Hazelwood School v. Kuhlmeier. Notes that recent court decisions have indicated the Hazelwood decision may not be as broad as it initially seemed. (KEH)

The National Association of Scholars, a three-year-old college faculty association, promotes the study of Western culture and offers a forum to professors who have felt inhibited from questioning affirmative-action programs, required courses on ethnic diversity, and other issues whose advocates are increasingly described as "politically…

The U.S. Supreme Court's "Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier" decision (1988) gave principals new authority to monitor the content of student publications. Since then, the "Student Press Law Center Report," a clearinghouse for aggrieved publication advisers and student editors, has reported censorship problems that never…

Reviews the history of censorship of books in China from the earliest Chinese history to 1949. The role of religion and obscenity in censorship are discussed, but the primary focus is on the political use of censorship, including the structure and regulation of censorship in communist China. A brief Chinese chronology is provided. (22…

Reviews the "Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier" U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding a principal's right to censor the content of a school-sponsored student publication. Explains why teachers oppose this decision, discusses liability issues, and argues for a free, uncensored student press. Includes eight legal references. (MLH)

Reviews latest developments in censorship efforts, including tactics and approaches used by those who would prevent children from reading certain books because of profanity or what they perceive to be negative moral implications in the books. Explains the reasons for the attempt at censorship and a list of the books most often targeted. (TB)

Discusses the history, technology, and functions of illegal publishing in Poland from 1945 to 1990, under official and widespread government censorship. Offers some sources for more information. (SR)

Discusses ominous assaults on press freedom on college campuses across the United States. Laments the lack of concern about First Amendment issues involved in these incidents, in which student newspapers have been stolen, trashed, and burned. (SR)

Describes the controversy sparked by Pat Conroy's novel "The Prince of Tides" when it was included in a reading list for an advanced-placement eleventh grade English class. Discusses Conroy's approach to writing and his experience as an unconventional teacher. (PRA)

Describes a college counselor's efforts to reason with a student singing a Guns and Roses' song vilifying African Americans and homosexuals. Many individuals lack the historical knowledge, concern, or empathy to appreciate the destructive power of such lyrics. First Amendment rights are threatened by the academic community's silent assent to…

Examines the findings in Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeir and discusses their implications for the future of the student press in public higher education. Recommends that the relationship between the institution and the newspaper should be a matter of policy and that the policy and its accompanying procedures or standards should be clarified…