Are universities warranted to dissolve campus
journalism?
 |
| Collaged photos grabbed from publications' Facebook pages |
But can they easily do so?
What does the law say?
Republic Act 7079 or the Campus Journalism Act
of 1991 encourages all educational institutions to establish a student
publication, upholding press freedom and promoting responsible journalism to
the youth.
Particularly in the tertiary level, editorial
board examinations are conducted annually by school newspapers in order to hire
new members. The existing publication staff does not need to re-take the
examination.
Campus journalists do not need licenses to
operate, and thus passing the exam is their proof of membership that lasts
until they graduate from the institution.
According to RA 7079, "A student shall not
be expelled or suspended solely on the basis of articles he or she has written,
or on the basis of the performance of his or her duties in the student
publication.
Who funds them?
There are four possible sources of revenue
where the student publication can get its funding.
- Subsidy appropriated from the school's budget
- Subscriptions of students, possibly in the form of publication fees collected during enrolment period
- Donations and grants
- Advertisements
The school administration should not impede the
release of the student publication's funds.
In fact, the fund of the student publication,
which is exclusively theirs, shall not be spent for other purposes. The
violator will face administrative or criminal action.
For universities that offer the K12 program,
the established Senior High School publication still falls under the secondary
level student publication. Thus, it is a separate entity from the institution's
official student publication.
Vague and vulnerable
But due to the vagueness of this law, it has
loopholes that can be taken advantage of by the school administration.
For example, the sources of funds are optional.
It can be revoked by removing the publication fees collected during enrolment.
This would prevent the publication from printing if their only source of fund
is students' subscriptions.
The law does not make it mandatory for
universities to support the publications financially, though the Implementing
Rules and Regulations of RA 7079 state that "…publication fees, revenues
realized from donations and grants, and advertisements shall be the sources of
funding for student publications."
Another flaw to be considered is the scheduling
of the Editorial Board Examination, wherein its delay can result to an
unofficial roster composed of its remaining members.
If paired with the university's own policy in
recognizing official organizations, this may impede the publication's
operations. However, student publications remain as an independent entity that
may not be affected by certain school policies depending on its constitution.
The Commission on Higher Education (CHED)
admonished higher education institutions to support student publications.
As stated in Memorandum Order no. 9 series of
2013: "The HEI shall support the establishment and implementation of
student publication as provided for in RA 7079, otherwise known as 'Campus
Journalism Act of 1991' and other media forms preferably within the framework
of self-management."
©The Pink Merman
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