The University of Southern Mississippi The Aquila Digital Community Dissertations Spring 5-2008 Toward a Free Collegiate Press: An Analysis of Influences that Can Lead to Censorship at College Newspapers Shaniece Bell Bickham University of Southern Mississippi Follow this and additional works at: https://aquila.edu/dissertations Part of the Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Journalism Studies Commons, and the Mass Communication Commons Recommended Citation Bickham, Shaniece Bell, "Toward a Free Collegiate Press: An Analysis of Influences that Can Lead to Censorship at College Newspapers" (2008).edu/dissertations/1135 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by The Aquila Digital Community. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of The Aquila Digital Community. For more information, please contact Joshua. The University of Southern Mississippi TOWARD A FREE COLLEGIATE PRESS: AN ANALYSIS OF INFLUENCES THAT CAN LEAD TO CENSORSHIP AT COLLEGE NEWSPAPERS by Shaniece Bell Bickham A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Studies Office of The University of Southern Mississippi in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Approved: May 2008 COPYRIGHT BY SHANIECE BELL BICKHAM 2008 The University of Southern Mississippi TOWARD A FREE COLLEGIATE PRESS: AN ANALYSIS OF INFLUENCES THAT CAN LEAD TO CENSORSHIP AT COLLEGE NEWSPAPERS by Shaniece Bell Bickham Abstract of a Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Studies Office of The University of Southern Mississippi in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy May 2008 ABSTRACT TOWARD A FREE COLLEGIATE PRESS: AN ANALYSIS OF INFLUENCES THAT CAN LEAD TO CENSORSHIP AT COLLEGE NEWSPAPERS by Shaniece Bell Bickham May 2008 The purpose of this research was to explore the impact that influences at the individual, organizational and societal levels had on content in college and university student newspapers.
Specifically, this research examined the ways that influences at the three levels could lead to censorship of the student press. A quantitative study was conducted through the use of online survey research. Student editors, faculty advisers, and academic affairs administrators of journalism and mass communication programs that are recognized as being accredited by the Accrediting Council for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (ACEJMC) were surveyed to gather information about the structure of the newspapers, their roles in the publication and content selection process, and their perceptions of others' roles. The practical purpose of this dissertation was to present methods for avoiding undue influences on content and censorship at both public and private learning institutions in an effort to ensure a free collegiate press.
Theoretically, this study offered insight about the influences on media content at the collegiate level, their relationships to content selection and censorship, and other related implications. This research study addressed three sets of hypotheses and three sets of research questions. Previous research suggested that censorship of the student press was an issue ii at several higher learning institutions. The results of this study identified the types of student newspapers that usually have censorship problems and the perceptions and characteristics of the student editors, faculty advisers, and academic affairs administrators who serve in the positions to influence and censor content.
Results showed that influences on content at any given level were related to the amount of control that existed. In addition, perceived differences did exist between student editors, faculty advisers, and academic affairs administrators as they related to influences on content. Perceived differences also existed between groups at public institutions as compared to private institutions. 111 DEDICATION This has been quite a journey with many bumps and setbacks along the way.
I thank God for seeing me through. I dedicate this research project to my husband, Raphael, for all of his support and motivation throughout the years. There were many occasions when I thought I wouldn't complete my program, but he reassured me time and time again that I was destined to be called "Dr." Thank you and I love you. IV ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to give special recognition to my dissertation chairperson, Dr.
Jae- Hwa Shin. Your guidance and expertise assisted me with molding my research interests and exploring them through this project. Thank you for keeping me on track and directing me to completion. I truly appreciate it.
In addition, I would like to thank Dr. Gene Wiggins, the first professor I met upon my arrival to USM. You have truly been a great help to me during my time at the university. I would also like to acknowledge my dissertation committee, Dr.
Jae-Hwa Shin, Dr. Gene Wiggins, Dr. Chris Campbell, Dr. Fei Xue, and Dr.
Thank you for all of your support and encouragement. It goes without saying, that I must also acknowledge Dr. Broussard, my mentor, who first encouraged me to pursue a doctorate degree at USM. I have finally made it, and I thank you for your support.
Last but certainly not least, I want to acknowledge my husband and daughters; Raphael, Lindsay, and Lauren; my parents, Herbert and Brender Bell; and my father-in- law and mother-in-law, Roshell and Norma Bickham. I love you all. v TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ii DEDICATION iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS v LIST OF TABLES viii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION 1 The Press Freedom Fight: Colonial America to Modern Times Overview of Recent Censorship Incidents at College Student Newspapers Statement of the Problem and Purpose of Research II.
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 13 Theories of Influence on Mass Media Content Individual Media Workers Influences on Media Content Organizational Influences on Media Content Societal Influences on Media Content Ideological Influences on Media Content III. REVIEW OF LITERATURE 22 What the Law Says Dealing with University Constraints Administrative Viewpoints on Censorship Individual Journalists' Viewpoints on Self-Censorship IV. HYPOTHESES AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS 38 V. METHODOLOGY 45 Online Survey Population for Study Survey Instrument Variables and Operational Definitions Validity Reliability Data Analysis VI VI.
RESULTS 54 Demographics Results VII. DISCUSSION 134 Summary of Results Theoretical Implications Practical Implications Limitations and Suggestions for Further Research APPENDIXES 145 Appendix A: List of ACEJMC Institutions Appendix B: Introduction Messages to Survey Participants Appendix C: Online Survey Instruments Appendix D: Human Subjects Protection Review Committee Notice of Committee Action REFERENCES 170 vn LIST OF TABLES Table 4.1 Summary of Operational Definitions 50 5.1 Cronbach's Alpha Reliability Test Results for 48 Survey Questions 52 5.2 Cronbach's Alpha Reliability of Individual Level Survey Questions 52 5.3 Cronbach' s Alpha Reliability o f Organizational Level Survey Questions 52 5.4 Cronbach's Alpha Reliability of Societal Level Survey Questions 53 6.1 Demographics of Student Editors 56 6.2 Demographics of Faculty Advisers 57 6.3 Demographics of Academic Affairs Administrators 58 6.4 Enrollment at ACEJMC Institutions for All Survey Participants 59 6.5 Pearson Correlations for All Groups in Relation to Control and Influence of Intrinsic Characteristics 61 6.6 Pearson Correlations for Student Editors' Amount of Control and Intrinsic Characteristics 62 6.7 Pearson Correlations for Faculty Advisers' Amount of Control and Intrinsic Characteristics 63 6.8 Pearson Correlations for Academic Affairs Administrators' Amount of Control and Intrinsic Characteristics 65 6.9 Multivariate Test Results Addressing Intrinsic Characteristics and Perceptions of Control 66 6.10 Multiple Comparisons of Groups Focusing on Intrinsic Characteristics and Amount of Control 67 viii 6.11 Multivariate Test Results Addressing Public and Private Status of Institutions in Relation to Influence on Content and Perceptions of Control 68 6.12 Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Addressing Public and Private Status of Institutions in Relation to Influence on Content and Perceptions of Control 69 6.13 Pearson Correlations for Perceptions of Control and Encouragement of Self-Censorship 73 6.14 Pearson Correlations for All Groups and Opinions on Roles of Administration and Faculty Advisers 75 6.15 Pearson Correlations for Student Editors' Self Censorship Practices and Avoidance of Certain Content Areas 78 6.16 Pearson Correlations for Faculty Advisers' Censorship Practices and Encouragement of the Avoidance of Certain Content 79 6.17 Pearson Correlations for Administrators' Likelihood to Censor Student Newspapers or Encourage the Avoidance of Certain Content 80 6.18 Multivariate Test Results Addressing Differences Amongst the Three Groups Concerning Control and Self-Censoring Practices 81 6.19 Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Addressing Differences Amongst the Three Groups Concerning Control and Self-Censoring Practices 82 6.20 Multiple Comparison Test Results Addressing Self-Censorship and Control Amongst The Three Groups 84 6.21 Multivariate Test Results Addressing the Two Groups of Public and Private Institutions in Relation to Self-Censorship and Control 88 6.22 Results of Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Addressing the Two Groups of Public and Private Institutions in Relation to Self-Censorship and Control 88 6.23 Pearson Correlations for Public/Private Status of Institutions and Official Guidelines 92 6.24 Pearson Correlations for Public/Private Status of Institutions and Censorship for Libel Reasons 92 IX 6.25 Multivariate Test Results Addressing the Role of Official Guidelines in Relation to Control and Self-Censorship 93 6.26 Results of Tests Between Subjects Addressing the Role of Official Documents in Relation to Control and Self-Censorship 94 6.27 Pearson Correlations Amongst Three Groups Addressing Role and Influence of Audience Members 100 6.28 Pearson Correlations for Role of Primary Audience as Perceived by Student Editors 102 6.29 Pearson Correlations for Role of Primary Audience as Perceived by Faculty Advisers 104 6.30 Pearson Correlations for Role of Primary Audience as Perceived by Academic Affairs Administrators 105 6.31 Multivariate Test Results Addressing Role of Primary Target Audience 106 6.32 Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Addressing Role of Primary Target Audience 107 6.33 Multiple Comparisons Related to Influence of Primary Target Audience 108 6.34 Multivariate Test Results Related to Primary Audience Influence Based on Public and Private Institutional Employment 110 6.35 Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Related to Primary Audience Influence Based on Public and Private Institutional Employment 110 6.36 Multivariate Test Results Related to Primary Audience Influence Based on Internal and External Audiences 112 6.37 Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Related to Primary Audience Influence Based on Internal and External Audiences 112 6.38 Multivariate Test Results Related to Level of Influence Amongst Different Groups 117 6.39 Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Related to Level of Influence Amongst Different Groups 117 x 6.40 Multiple Comparisons Related to Level of Influence Amongst the Three Groups 118 6.41 Multivariate Test Results Related to Public and Private Institutions and the Level of Influence of Each Group 121 6.42 Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Related to Public and Private Institutions and the Level of Influence of Each Group 121 6.43 Multivariate Test Results Related to Influences that Lead to Censorship Among the Three Groups 124 6.44 Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Related to Influences that Lead to Censorship Among the Three Groups 124 6.45 Multivariate Test Results Related to Influences Among the Three Groups that Lead to Censorship 126 6.46 Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Related to Influences Among the Three Groups that Lead to Censorship 127 6.47 Multivariate Test Results Related to Influences Associated with Fair and Balanced Reporting 129 6.48 Tests of Between-Subjects Results Related to Influences Associated with Fair and Balanced Reporting 130 6.49 Multivariate Test Results Related to Influences in Association with Journalistic Quality of Fair and Balanced Reporting Amongst Public and Private Institutions 132 6.50 Tests of Between-Subjects Effects Related to Influences in Association with Journalistic Quality of Fair and Balanced Reporting Amongst Public and Private Institutions 132 XI 1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Most professional journalists started their careers in the newsrooms of college newspapers. Students who work for college newspapers have the unique opportunity of getting the experience and training needed to secure an internship or permanent position with a newspaper or magazine. While in college, aspiring journalists learn to conduct research, cultivate sources, facilitate interviews, and write news stories.
Higher education institutions that offer journalism programs are charged with the responsibility of producing credible, objective reporters who can effectively write and communicate information that is pertinent to the public. Journalism and mass communication programs that have received accreditation from the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communication have a responsibility to uphold the council's mission of encouraging dissent, inquiry, and free expression as guaranteed by the First Amendment. Telling a story responsibly requires more than good writing skills and strong vocabulary, however.