More than one in three U.S. high school students say newspapers should get government approval before stories print. College students, however, do not say the same.

In a survey of 112,003 high school students, 36 percent believe newspapers should get government approval before publishing, 51 percent said they should publish freely and 13 percent had no opinion, according to a Jan. 30 article in USA Today.

In an unscientific Northern Star poll of 70 NIU students, 17 percent said media should need government approval before going to press, but other respondents disagreed.

Respondents generally held strong opinions, the majority of each side immediately answering the question, with some flinching at hearing the word “censor” and answering “no” before the question was finished.

“I think that the people should dictate what the truth is. The government shouldn’t,” said Adam Theis, a junior electrical engineering major. “People should be more aware of the information they take in. That’s the beauty of the Internet.”

Others said journalists play an important role because they help others understand all the actions of government, good and bad.

Censorship would prevent people from knowing information the government does not want us to know, said junior elementary education major Darcy Hajduk.

Increased awareness of the First Amendment could be a factor in why most students do not support government censorship, said Brian Thornton, an associate professor in the communication department.

“The job of journalism is to hold a mirror to society,” he said, adding that the reflection may not always be pretty.

Thornton cited a motto from the Society of Professional Journalists: “If reporters don’t tell you the truth, who will?” Journalists are the government’s watchdog, he said.

Democracy requires constant vigilance is the appropriate statement to understand the dynamic between government and journalism, he said.

D’Marco Gordon, a senior bachelor of general studies, said censorship must be looked at in degrees. If it is obvious someone intentionally printed something wrong, or it is particularly damaging, then they should be censored.

Gina Gallinis, a senior time arts major, said she does not support media censorship, but could not think of any other way to prevent false information from getting out.