Penn State removes its student newspaper racks over concerns about political ads

Penn State removed nearly three dozen racks containing its independent student-produced newspaper from on-campus locations last week because politics-related ads on the racks violated school policy.

The Daily Collegian reports they were not notified of the racks’ removal Wednesday night and have not been told where they are being stored. However, they said they expected the racks to be returned sometime Friday without the ads.

The newspaper said there were about 35 racks overall inside various buildings on the school’s campus in State College, with three running an ad for Vice President Kamala Harris and six running voter registration ads in poster space above the newspapers. The other racks did not have posters.

The newspaper said it received feedback from alumni and students about the ads, though it was not clear if the comments were supportive and/or critical. The Daily Collegian said it was notified of the university’s concerns Wednesday via an off-the-record conversation.

There was a discussion with the newspaper’s general manager, Wayne Lowman, about the ads possibly violating university rules. But the newspaper said Lowman was never notified of plans to remove the newsstands.

“I still haven’t talked to anyone from the university. I’ve made that request, to talk to whoever made the decision,” Lowman told the newspaper. “I don’t think whoever’s making these decisions has thought through the impact — what are they trying to accomplish?”

Wyatt DuBois, the school’s director of University Public Relations, told The Associated Press on Friday that Penn State is not challenging the distribution of newspapers on the racks or otherwise. However, it is prohibiting the newspaper’s sale of advertising space on university premises that is occurring outside of the actual publication, since that violates two university policies.

The racks were removed for only a short time to remove the advertising, DuBois said, and are in place so that the papers can be easily accessed on campus. The display of the paper version of the Daily Collegian is permitted, as the University supports free news and information sources specifically for its students, he said.

The newspaper’s editor did not respond Friday to messages seeking comment about the removal of the racks.

The newspaper utilizes advertising sales as a revenue source and notes candidates from both major parties have purchased ads in previous campaigns. It said the importance of advertising revenue has become increasingly vital after receiving a 100% funding cut from the university’s general fund in 2023, beginning this school year.