Student Bloggers Disciplined For Threatening Teacher

CHICAGO - Three Chicago high school students were disciplined after posting obscene and threatening statements about teachers on an online Web log unrelated to the school.

School officials said the three boys are seventh- and eighth-graders in an advanced placement program at Taft High School.

NBC5's Lisa Tutman reported Thursday that Chicago Public School officials say that this is more a matter of threats of violence than it is an issue of freedom of speech.

While computer usage is very much a part of daily life in high school, Tutman said, the entries in question have landed the bloggers in hot water.

One of the online entries from last month referenced cutting a teacher's throat. An entry posted this week by one of the students apologized for what was written.

The postings were found on a blog, short for Web log. Blogs are popular Internet sites where virtually anyone can log on and write their opinions on any subject. Taft students told Tutman that blogs are very common among them.

"I keep in touch with kids at Taft," student Orlando Colon said of his blog usage. "I've met a lot of new people here, you know, just through the Web site ... you know, you meet up with people you might not of even thought came to your school."

School officials say that the blog postings in this case crossed the line by including vulgar, profane, obcene and threatening messages directed at a specific teacher who was indentified by name in the postings.

"I think that shouldn't do that," a fellow student said. "It's not right to the teachers and it's hurting the teacher's feelings."

"They're stupid for doing that. It's not right to hurt someone's feelings," another student, Salina Quiles, said.

Although the incident did not happen on school grounds, Chicago Public Schools spokesman Mike Vaughn said the district's law department determined the school may discipline the students, despite objections raised by some who say their First Amendment rights are being violated.
Officials claim the messages could have impacted safety at the school.

"I'm really in favor of freedom of speech, in general, you know. I believe we need to be able to say whatever we need, but threatening someone's life? I think that crosses the line," said Joan Lipschutz, the Taft school nurse.

Students told Tutman that they heard that the some of the offenders had been suspended, but Vaughn would not detail the students' punishment, citing confidentiality issues.

In any case, Tutman said, student bloggers say the event won't stop the blogging among them, although it may make them think twice about what they post.