Schools consider banning JuicyCampus
More than 500 schools are included in the gossip Web site.
Dec. 2, 2008
Juicycampus.com was founded in October 2007 and has already hit MU by allowing students to anonymously post gossip about their peers. Some of the most recent posts discuss "hottest girl," the "most ugly couple" and Barack Obama, and some posts contain racist remarks and crude language.
The Web site allows users to post anything without providing a name or e-mail address, and once a bulletin is posted it cannot be deleted by anyone but the author. According to the JuicyCampus Web site, deleting a post would be censorship, and the site's staff will not remove a post if someone is offended and will only consider removing it if personal information such as phone number or e-mail address is posted.
Tennessee State University recently became the first university to ban JuicyCampus from campus access. In a letter to TSU, the president of the site, Matt Ivester, accused the university of violating its students' First Amendment rights by censoring their speech and comparing the university to the Chinese government.
Ivester said in the letter that prestigious universities such as Yale, Duke, Princeton and Harvard have declined to ban the Web site from its campus. Ivester praised these institutions in his letter for taking the opportunity to educate their students.
If a ban on JuicyCampus were to be proposed at MU, freshman Cadri Cunningham wouldn't support it.
"We all have rights and should be able to access any Web site we wish as students," she said.
But freshman Adrianna Amato said she has been mentioned on the site and would support a ban on JuicyCampus.
"Web sites such as juicycampus.com only hurt people, and nothing good can come from it," she said.
Freshman Rachel Watson said someone called her names on the site and would also support a ban.
"Gossip can be harmful enough, but when stuff is out there for the entire world, including people on other campuses to read and most of it is just outrageous and not true, then it crosses the line," she said.
The Division of Information Technology director, Terry Robb, said though it would not be difficult to block a Web site, it would have to violate terms in the university's acceptable use policy. He said blocking a Web site because of offensive content is a free speech issue and is not up to DoIT.
Robb said there would probably have to be permission from senior campus leadership, the general counsel and the Division of Technology committee.
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