North Central University Censorship

After students wrote the school newspaper criticizing the Minneapolis university's stance on the Soulforce Freedom Riders, North Central University administrators edited anything that might make the university look bad. Two students were removed for realizing that Christianity is not perfect.

From the Grand Forks Herald:

"Christian college removes editors

Two editors at North Central University's student newspaper were removed from their positions after refusing to publish because of what they called censorship by the Christian college's administration.

Northern Light news editor, Chuck Bahr, said the paper's staff decided this week to stop production rather than follow the school's orders to "only publish things that cast North Central in a positive light." He said the staff also refused to have stories read and edited by university officials.

North Central responded by dismissing Bahr and his wife, Hope, who was the editor-in-chief, he said.

Susan Detlefsen, North Central's director of media relations, said Chuck Bahr was demoted to staff writer Thursday, while Hope was dismissed and to be replaced by a new editor, who will be picked by faculty members overseeing the paper.

"The decision was made based on an accumulation of events and actions during the school year, not a particular action," Detlefsen said.

Northern Light has dealt with censorship issues for years, Chuck Bahr said. But things got worse recently after the newspaper published an opinion column on the Assemblies of God doctrine on speaking in tongues and stories about the administration's decision not to allow advocates from Soulforce, a national interfaith organization that supports gay rights, to visit the campus on April 17, he said.

North Central is owned and operated by Assemblies of God. Detlefsen said the school has in the past "pre-read" the paper before it went to press.

Bahr said he realizes the administration, as the paper's publisher, has legal authority over its operation, but he values the principles of journalism: "The principle of the matter is that as Christians and journalists, we have to publish stories that are true and accurate," he said."