U.S. Supreme Court won't hear appeals in students' online rants; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 1/18/12

Taryn Luna, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; U.S. Supreme Court won't hear appeals in students' online rants:

"The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday refused the school districts' request to hear the two cases and another of a West Virginia teenager who disparaged a fellow student online.

The Supreme Court decision upholds earlier rulings from the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in favor of the Pennsylvania students from June 2011.

The court had ruled that each district breached the student's freedom of speech when they were punished for actions that occurred off school grounds and on home computers."

Where Freedom of Expression Runs Headlong Into the Impulse to Censor; New York Times, 2/28/11

Clyde Haberman, New York Times; Where Freedom of Expression Runs Headlong Into the Impulse to Censor:

"“The principle of free speech is easy when the speech is something that’s popular and noncontroversial,” Mr. Siegel said. “The real test is when you disagree with the content of the speech and you still defend the right of someone to articulate the message.”"