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Pennsylvania State University temporarily removed dozens of newspaper racks across campus on Wednesday because three displayed ads for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and six others displayed ads for voter registration, allegedly violating university policy.
According to a statement from the university, the issue was with the advertisements on top of the racks—not with the paper itself. Officials said the ads violated regulations on advertising and use of campus facilities. They added, “The racks were removed for only a short period of time to remove the advertising and have been put back in place so that the papers can be easily accessed on campus.”
The racks, taken on Wednesday with no notice to the newspaper staff, were returned with the ads removed on Friday afternoon.
In an interview with TribLive, Wayne Lowan, manager of The Daily Collegian, called the move “overreach” by officials and said the newspaper may have to reimburse advertisers. The Daily Collegian’s editor in chief, Amy Schafer, condemned the move as censorship in an article in the student newspaper, arguing the removal was a “violation against free speech.”
Outside groups also expressed concern.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression wrote in a social media post that the group was “investigating” reports that Penn State removed newspapers and newsstands from campus, adding that “@penn_state can’t use advertising regulations to stifle the free press.”
Penn State officials denied stifling the student newspaper in their statement: “The goal was to quickly rectify the situation and ensure that all advertisements in violation of University policies were removed. Our intention was never to stifle news delivery, and we value the service and mission of The Daily Collegian.”
