Student journalists stand as the chroniclers of university life, storytellers that shine the spotlight on minorities, and conversationalists who ensure that the student body are not only aware but also critical of the narratives that swirl around campus walls. The hard part of student media, though, is pointing out the depravity of individuals or institutions and to advocate for the wronged. This can carry severe consequences, not just for the journalists in the moment, but for the student body down the line.
Student media have long fought to combat all forms of corruption by uncloaking them to enforce accountability and justice. But because corruption repels what is correct, campus journalists face looming threats from administrations for their service of reportage.
In the Philippines, 1,000 cases of campus press freedom violations, 206 in 2024 alone, have been recorded by the College Editors Guild of the Philippines, the Philippines’ national union of student publications. These violations encompass censorship, state surveillance, and budget freezes, among others. And in general, the country ranked 116th in the latest Press Freedom Index (PFI) by Reporters Without Borders.
For Australia, while faring higher in the PFI at 29th place, various campus publications still face looming threats of censorship and budget cuts from their administrations or unions. Not only that, there is no baseline legal protection for Australian student media, compared to the Philippines’ Campus Journalism Act of 1991 (CJA). The CJA was ratified after the Marcos Sr. dictatorship (Martial Law), which clamped Filipino media outlets and targeted Filipino journalists, to recognize the role of student media in sparking discussions and movements among the youth against repression. With this, student media being safeguarded by law is utmost essential.
Censorship is already a tell-tale sign of avoiding accountability for misdeeds. It means attempts to forget history, such as political censorship against campus publications in Cagayan State University for their reportage of the 53rd commemoration of Martial Law’s declaration last September. At the social level, it also means subjecting to conformity, such as taping black bars on Honi Soit’s notorious “Vagi Soit” edition as consenting women’s genitalia seemed to be too explicit for adult eyes.
In my experience as a former Managing Editor of The LaSallian, the official student publication of De La Salle University, I admit that we have protection against political forces and rough attacks. Still, we got jabs from our school administration, fellow student organisations, and external groups for our reporting.
I remember receiving an email last year wherein a large fast fashion brand requested us to take down our report of their tent falling over along a major walkway in our campus, as they feared for their “publicity.” Similar requests persisted throughout my tenure and even after. Recently, the publication was told by the administration and the student government to take down 70.8 per cent functional literacy (literacy skills that go beyond basic levels) according to the Philippine Statistics Authority, and Australia showing 97 per cent insufficient media literacy based on the Public Interest Journalism Initiative.
In this digital age, we have also become more prone to knee-jerk reactions as our ability to analyse carefully and respectfully becomes undermined. Academic literature showsthat critical thinking definitely accounts for acknowledging the limits of our knowledge as well as our personal biases, which is especially important given our tendency to source our information from social media. This information can be accessible without proper regulations, and our swelled irrationality can become bigotry simply because of the mere existence of freedom of speech.
With this, while the student body is not directly affected by the distress of censorship tactics, the subtle change in how they can receive, process, and discuss information can start to affect the social climate of their campus and beyond.
Despite everything, student media continue to press forward. Yet this is a long, steep trek considering the overall circumstances of not only respective institutions but society at large. While the Philippines has the CJA, it is relatively fragile given the lack of provisions for digital media, defense against school interference, and penalties for violators. Filipino student media are lobbying for the Campus Press Freedom Bill in response to this, but it unfortunately remains in legal limbo for the past 13 years as it was constantly met with no progress in the Philippine Congress.
For Australia, the Student Media Association (SMA) was recently established as the country’s first campus media union after finding inspiration from the courage of Filipino student media. The SMA aims to become an agent to solidify protection and advocacies for Australian student journalism, and that one day they too could have legal protection in their national governance.
As student media continues to be under siege, its protection and defense means more than ever. This means more than keeping these publications running; the general student population deserve and must receive news and practice discourse of what is happening inside of their campuses, because they will carry it outside when dealing with larger societal issues. If the rights of student media are protected, then the rights of the student body are protected as well.
After all, student media do not write about and for themselves, but for the people whose stories need to be written in order to be honoured, advocated, and remembered. This fight must stretch beyond perseverance if the end goal is to deliver accountability and justice.