Freedom of the press is under direct attack at Indiana University Bloomington.
In mid-October, the university fired Director of Student Media Jim Rodenbush, who had been with IU since 2018, after he refused to censor the student staff of the Indiana Daily Student, the university’s student newspaper.
The censorship demand came from IU administrators, who instructed Rodenbush that the Oct. 16 print edition of the IDS—their annual homecoming guide—should contain “nothing but information about homecoming—no other news at all, and particularly no traditional front page news coverage.”
When Rodenbush refused to enforce that demand, calling it what it was—censorship—the administration ignored him.
Days later, the IDS editors asked for his reinstatement. Instead of offering clarity or good faith dialogue, the university appeared to retaliate by cutting the print edition of the homecoming guide altogether.
IU Chancellor David Reingold denies any retaliation or attempt at censorship, and has since allowed the IDS to make use of their current budget “as they see fit” through June 30. The IDS announced Thursday they will pick up their print production as scheduled.
This is not a misunderstanding. It is an explicit attempt to control a student newsroom. It violates not only the constitutional right to a free press, but also Indiana University’s own Student Media Charter—a document approved by the IU trustees in 1969 that guarantees the IDS full editorial control “without prior review by any administrative members.”
For a university to turn its back on that charter, and on the students it was written to protect, is a disgrace.
We at The Bulletin stand firmly with the journalists of the Indiana Daily Student. Their fight is not just a campus issue—it is a national one.
When administrators decide what student reporters can print, they undermine the very foundation of journalism and the purpose of higher education itself. A university should be a place where inquiry thrives, not where it is silenced.
Let us be clear: student journalists are not the problem. They are the conscience of the campus—the ones who ask hard questions, uncover uncomfortable truths and document history in real time. To censor them is to teach students that truth has limits, that authority should go unchallenged, that silence is safer than honesty. That lesson is poisonous.
The Indiana Daily Student has been a pillar of student journalism for over 150 years. They’ve trained generations of journalists who now serve newsrooms across the nation. And now, their own university—the institution that should be their greatest supporter—is trying to silence them.
We refuse to accept that.
Censorship by any name—whether it hides behind “restructuring,” “branding,” or “university direction”—is still censorship. It is cowardice disguised as policy. And it has no place in a democratic institution.
To the administrators of Indiana University: reinstate Rodenbush. Restore your students’ freedom to print the truth.
To university leaders everywhere: reaffirm your commitment to independent student media.
And to readers, alumni and faculty: pay attention, speak up and stand with the journalists who tell your stories even when it costs them.
The Indiana Daily Student has chosen integrity over obedience. The Bulletin stands with them—not just in words, but in action. We will not accept a future where student journalists must choose between telling the truth and keeping their jobs. We will not be silent when power punishes transparency. Because when one student newsroom is silenced, every newsroom is at risk.
And we refuse to be quiet.
Allie Breneman contributed writing for this editorial.
