Newspaper editors class has power of speech

On the afternoon of Aug. 1 in a strangely quiet classroom, adviser Dean Hume’s Newspaper Editors class covered sensitive topics concerning legal issues and administrative problems that may come up while producing a newspaper during the 2011 MIPA Summer Journalism Workshops.

Hume talked with his students about copyrights on the web, conflict of interest, ethics and upholding an “expectations and consequences policy” with staff members. Using a simple roleplay exercise, Hume showed his students how to convince students to give interviews on hard-hitting topics such as anorexia. When his students made no move to talk, Hume reminded them that they can speak–by raising their arms above their heads, waving them up and down, and repeating back to him, “I have the power of speech.” By Elizabeth Martin / Upstart Staff

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