Freedom of speech and highschool

There was a news item today about a high school newspaper having published an article at least one parent objected to, said article dealing with sex acts on high school property.

Now, while I'm well past high school, I do, in fact, still remember how sexually charged high school was, and, oh by the way, I went to an all boys high school. During that time I spent considerable time chasing after and occasionally succeeding in finding a willing partner. Said partner and I enjoying each other in whatever location offered even a small measure of privacy. The point here being that I am keenly aware that high school students engage in sex.

With that out of the way, consider the following question - should a high school paper publish material some parents regard as offensive? That is offensive enough to make issue of it.

Interestingly, although somewhat depressingly, the high school student interviewed, said student being on the school newspaper, regarded it as a second amendment issue saying, "It's a free speech issue. As a journalist I can write anything I want."

Work with me here. This is from a high school student and self professed journalist. I'm inclined to the view that high school isn't what it once was. Even so, should a high school student reasonably believe that he is a) a journalist (he's not, he's a high school student whose only claim to journalism is that he belongs to the high school newspaper club), and b)he has an unabridged right to write and publish whatever he wants? I think not.

There is an old saw to the effect that the first amendment does not give one the right to scream fire in a crowded theater. That is, free speech is not an unabridged right. A self professed journalist, even if he is a high school student, should know this.

But what of the content per se? Is it appropriate for a high school publication to publish material at least some parents regard as lewd? Now, I don't know about this particular high school newspaper, but most are funded by city funds. That is by tax money given to schools for some several purposes including various clubs including, in particular, high school newspapers. Given that the publication is tax supported should it have a right to publish anything it wants? I think not.

Clearly such things as hate speech should be restricted. But what about value related speech? Whose values? Therein lies the devil. Should the standards we apply to commercial speech be applied to high school newspapers? Who decides when material is of such a nature that it has no redeming social value?

While I don't have a clear opinion here, I do believe that the high school student is wrong. You can't scream fire in a crowded theater.