Free speech under fire in blogger controversy
Issue date: 11/17/09
Section: Editorial
The lawsuit against Jess Zimmerman of Butler University could happen anywhere. Clearly an attempt to censor online speech, it could have also impact students' rights to speak freely everywhere.
Zimmerman criticized his administration online and as a result his university is suing him - marking the first time in the nation that any university has filed a lawsuit to control online speech. Although Zimmerman said the national outcry caused Butler to drop the suit in court, the university is still putting him on trial to discipline him using campus proceedings.
The comments were posted in an anonymous blog and apparently Butler couldn't take the heat because they sought the man behind the words - Zimmerman - for speaking what he believes to be the truth in an open forum.
Although private universities have the ability to place certain restrictions and limitations to curtail free speech, the student exchanged his opinion on the off-campus blog site.
The blog barely got any hits initially; it wasn't until Butler administrators spoke against it that more people were popping on the site to check out the controversy. So the school actually drew more attention to the criticism by attacking it.
If Zimmerman had actually used slander, the libel suit might have been justifiable, but there is no proof that his words were damaging to the university. They are trying to silence this blogger's voice and the message it sends seriously threatens free speech. Zimmerman could face major repercussions on-campus for speaking his mind, a problematic blow to the freedoms U.S. citizens have been granted.
The student was simply being critical of the ethics and morality of a situation. His opinion didn't defame the university; it called out university officials on alleged wrongdoing, a shining example of the importance and need for the First Amendment.
Minnesota State or another public institution might not get away with doing this, but being a private establishment should not justify hindering the free exchange of ideas. Butler's efforts to chill free speech online - the communication hub of the world - are the real problems facing their university.
It seems that while Butler attempted to contain its opposition using Zimmerman as an example, it tampered its image on a national level, much more damage than a measly student blog could create.
Zimmerman criticized his administration online and as a result his university is suing him - marking the first time in the nation that any university has filed a lawsuit to control online speech. Although Zimmerman said the national outcry caused Butler to drop the suit in court, the university is still putting him on trial to discipline him using campus proceedings.
The comments were posted in an anonymous blog and apparently Butler couldn't take the heat because they sought the man behind the words - Zimmerman - for speaking what he believes to be the truth in an open forum.
Although private universities have the ability to place certain restrictions and limitations to curtail free speech, the student exchanged his opinion on the off-campus blog site.
The blog barely got any hits initially; it wasn't until Butler administrators spoke against it that more people were popping on the site to check out the controversy. So the school actually drew more attention to the criticism by attacking it.
If Zimmerman had actually used slander, the libel suit might have been justifiable, but there is no proof that his words were damaging to the university. They are trying to silence this blogger's voice and the message it sends seriously threatens free speech. Zimmerman could face major repercussions on-campus for speaking his mind, a problematic blow to the freedoms U.S. citizens have been granted.
The student was simply being critical of the ethics and morality of a situation. His opinion didn't defame the university; it called out university officials on alleged wrongdoing, a shining example of the importance and need for the First Amendment.
Minnesota State or another public institution might not get away with doing this, but being a private establishment should not justify hindering the free exchange of ideas. Butler's efforts to chill free speech online - the communication hub of the world - are the real problems facing their university.
It seems that while Butler attempted to contain its opposition using Zimmerman as an example, it tampered its image on a national level, much more damage than a measly student blog could create.
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