Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy put the kibosh on an article to be published in a student newspaper about his visit to the high school faster than you can say, "Wise Latina." The student reporters got big-footed by Kennedy, a purported fervent supporter of First Amendment rights, when they tried to run a puff piece about his visit to their hoity toity Manhattan prep school, Dalton.
The paper inexplicably agreed to give the Justice prior review and issued a note in the next issue that read, "We are not able to cover the recent visit by a Supreme Court Justice due to numerous publication constraints." When the story was sent back, it had "a couple of minor tweaks," according to court public information officer Kathleen Arberg who spoke with the New York Times. The agreed upon terms may have something to do with the head of school calling the request for review nothing but "fact checking." For a student newspaper. Covering a prepared speech. Yuck.
The paper's faculty adviser told the Times that the newspaper "believed we could not publish anything without the approval of Justice Kennedy" or his office. The story, written by the paper's EIC, is delayed until next issue. It's shameful that anyone would attempt to bully a student newspaper to kowtow to its demands. What's worse is that this was a Supreme Court Justice.
Get more: NYT
