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Chico censors newspaper hazing story
July 12, 2005 - 9:12:10 AM PST
Chico newspaper drops story after CSUC objects
AP
CHICO A local weekly newspaper blinked last week in a confrontation with Chico State University over a scathing article about the school's animal-house reputation.
The Chico News & Review yanked the article The Party Rules" when the university withdrew the paper's advertiser-heavy city guide from its student orientation packets. The paper replaced the article with a welcome address from the university president.
The article dropped from the guide, Goin' Chico," refers to several incidents including last year's alleged hazing death of a student and the filming of a frathouse porn video that have added to Chico's growing reputation as a notorious party school.
You've selected a school known more for its collective booze intake than for its contributions to academic achievement," the article crows. So have fun, kiddies ... and try not to die."
University officials argued that the article could damage the school's image, and promptly pulled the guide from its orientation packets, which are distributed to prospective students and their parents and contain information on city and college services.
But the newspaper had promised advertisers that the guide would be distributed in the orientation packets, said News & Review editor Tom Gascoyne.
So the newspaper and the school came to an agreement: replace the disputed article with a welcome address, and the issues would be returned to the packets.
We came to an agreement because we want to get these things distributed," Gascoyne said. We promised our advertisers that they were going out in the packets. We want to make good with that."
The article is still available in copies of the guide that aren't included in the orientation packets and on the News & Review's Web site.
Information from: Chico Enterprise-Record
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