Of Tempests, Laughing Horses, and Sacred Cows: Controlling College Student Presses Between the World Wars

• In Event: Student Voices on Culture, Rights, and Life on the College Campus

Abstract

This paper examines the controversies involving college student publications in the 1920s and 1930s, demonstrating that restrictions cut across institutional types and regions. It identifies three types of content that frequently caused difficulty (criticism of university officials, unpopular political stands, and alleged obscenity) and shows how they interacted with each other in specific campus contexts. Two rationalizations for controlling the presses were evident: papers as student activities that should be controlled like any other, or, as publishers, institutions claimed ultimate authority over editors and content. These cases demonstrate institutional desire to avoid controversies that might offend donors. Still, the very act of censoring papers could lead to the very publicity that presidents were hoping to avoid.

Author

• Timothy Reese Cain, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign