It is troubling how common it is becoming for institutions to use their power to shut down and shut out the press. 

Three days ago, “The Sunflower,” the campus newspaper at Wichita State University, reported on an open records request that they filed in Nov. for emails sent and received by the president and several other key players that included key words or phrases relating to an investigation “The Sunflower” was conducting.

“The Sunflower” paid $593 for 2,102 pages of documentation, of which 539 pages were completely blacked out. That’s more than a quarter of the pages that “The Sunflower” paid $593 for. 

An additional 928 pages had some redactions.    

“The Sunflower” could be looking at paying WSU an additional $4,600 for these severely redacted emails, for the cost of “man hours” spent compiling this information.

This is a severe miscarriage of justice, especially since these emails are subject to the Kansas Open Records Act. 

Additionally, “The Sunflower” is looking at having their budget slashed in half by their student government, likely as a response to their unfavorable coverage that exposed so many important issues on campus, some of which involved their student government. 

As a student journalist, I stand in solidarity with “The Sunflower,” but even as a person who just believes in democracy and wants to see the democratic process succeed in this country and in this state, I stand with “The Sunflower” and I commend them for staying strong in the face of administrative and student government pressure.

It isn’t easy, but it is worth it, and we need more journalists and people like those at “The Sunflower” who effectively say “I don’t care if you take my funding. This story needs to be told and the people need to know about this and that’s more important than you, or I or any threats you might make.”

It is sad that we have been reduced to the point that we must rely on students, generally in their late teens and early twenties, to hold our administrators accountable. 

But I am thankful we have them. 

I am thankful that we have the free press that allows the truth to prevail. 

I am thankful that we don’t have to rely on universities and their sanitized PR stories that are bleached white for public consumption.

I am thankful that people, like the journalists at “The Sunflower,” are willing to stand up, put authority in check and say “Not on our watch.” 

I would hate to think about where we would be without those selfless people willing to prioritize the truth, their journalistic integrity and what is right over what is easiest to do and what people in power, and those who blindly support those in power, want them to do.

Issues like this are bigger than all of us. 

I commend and thank the journalists at “The Sunflower” for doing their due diligence and for going above and beyond what most people would expect of student journalists.

We can’t afford to just be kids or just be students anymore. 

The world needs people like us to do our jobs.