How important is a free press to a democracy anyway? Only about half of America's high school students think newspapers should be allowed to run stories without government approval. In a study funded by the Knight Foundation, researchers at the University of Connecticut questioned more than 100,000 high school students, nearly 8,000 teachers, and more than 500 administrators and principals. Nearly three-fourths of high school students either do not know how they feel about the First Amendment or admit they take it for granted, and more than one-third of students surveyed say the First Amendment goes too far in the rights it guarantees. The more students study the First Amendment, use news media in the classroom, and are involved in student journalism, the greater their appreciation of First Amendment rights.

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