Students at Bakersfield College are meant to feel safe on campus, with open access to information about events and policies. One way students can access this information is through the school newspaper, the Renegade Rip, which is written for students by students. But what happens when the reporters at the college are barred from events, told they cannot take photos, and receive no response from the people meant to be in charge when it comes to news, developing polices, and dangerous situations?
Senior Legal Counselor Mike Hiestand with the Student Press Law Center said, “As a general matter, student journalists at public colleges have the same First Amendment right as professional journalists to attend, observe, and report on events that are open to the campus or general public.”
Leadership, professors, and members of BC’s various clubs have violated these First Amendment guarantees by not allowing the Rip journalists to cover these events. One such example was an UMOJA Club event at the beginning of the spring semester, where the journalist covering that story was told that it was a non-public event and that they were not allowed to take photos, even though it was being held on this open campus and had been advertised on Instagram and on posters throughout the school. Something similar occurred last semester when a journalist covering a different story was told that if they wanted to write a story on it, they would need approval from the club’s leadership before it could be printed. It is a bedrock principle of press freedom that sources and subjects of coverage do not get to control what journalists report or demand advance approval of stories.
Another such event occurred when a journalist attempted to cover a standard softball game at the college. While photographing the game, the journalist, who was not blocking access or disrupting the game, was told by a BC staff member that they had to photograph the event from behind the bleachers, even though they had a presentable press badge.
When yet another Rip journalist attempted to cover an information session by the Student Government Association, an association that literally represents its fellow students at the college, the journalist was told they would not be allowed to cover it because the members “might not feel comfortable” having them there, begging the question, “Why the lack of transparency?”
These examples don’t necessarily represent the leadership of BC; they are merely everyday, routine events. Certainly, if something dangerous occurred on campus, the BC leadership would want that shared with the students, not simply handled quietly and internally, covering only the bare minimum required by law. But that, unfortunately, does not seem to be the case.
On Jan. 27, at around noon, a student was allegedly assaulted at knifepoint by a petitioner on campus. The petitioner then allegedly burgled the cafeteria, possibly stealing various items, and was later arrested by the Bakersfield Police Department. However, no further information was made available; the facts of the case are unclear because officials have not contacted reporters for additional details despite numerous attempts. This lack of transparency and communication puts students at risk and creates mistrust of the college’s governing bodies, which may be facing leadership problems of their own, including the absence of a permanent college president.
On Feb. 3, BC Main Campus went into a lockdown after receiving a threat that was later determined to be unsubstantiated. The public relations office at the college sent out an email notice of lockdown at 10:56 a.m., yet most people didn’t receive an emergency alert text until 11:14. There seems to be a lack of coordination even in the face of a potential emergency.
Journalism is a fundamental right in the United States, and it needs to be firmly protected at the school level. However, Bakersfield College continues to withhold information and create obstacles, prioritizing its public image over student safety; a college that doesn’t want an educated and informed student body is a college that doesn’t grasp the point of higher education.