Academic Freedom at Princeton

Peter Barzilai ’97, PAW Editor
Email to Princeton Alumni Weekly Subscribers

Editor’s note: This is letter that was sent to PAW email subscribers affirming the magazine’s editorial independence. We believe it may be of interest to PFS subscribers as well.

Shortly after the November cover article on Edoardo Almagià ’73 and the Princeton University Art Museum published on PAW’s website, I noticed a comment reacting to the story on social media: “Aren’t alum magazines supposed to be all puffery?”

Not all of them. PAW, as we like to remind everyone, is editorially independent, one of the precious few that can claim this. Some Princeton alumni are skeptical. They write us and want PAW to be critical of the University about free speech or campus construction or student mental health or how it makes and spends money. We do report on these issues and others on a regular basis and in an unbiased way. It’s fair to argue whether we should go deeper into certain topics or news events.

Christopher Connell ’71
Princeton Alumni Weekly

Excerpt: Even now, tens of thousands of high school seniors around the country and the world are taking SATs — optional since the pandemic — and polishing essays in hopes of walking the campus pathways with Foster and Gardner. Princeton in August tweaked the short essay questions on its application to comply with the Supreme Court ruling, including asking applicants to write about how “your lived experience has shaped you.”

In August, the Board of Trustees established an ad hoc committee to examine Princeton’s admission policies, guided by two key principles: merit-driven admissions and the imperative to attract students from all sectors of society, including underrepresented groups.

Charlotte Young and Katie Tiers
Daily Princetonian

Excerpt: On and off Princeton’s campus, Whig-Clio is recognized as a political force in the history of debating societies. Today, the society prides itself as “the oldest college and literary debating club in the United States.” Notable alumni include James Madison Class of 1771 and Woodrow Wilson Class of 1879. While the club boasts itself as the premier political organization on campus, often bringing popular speakers, hosting parliamentary debates, and holding councils on national and international affairs, it has struggled to sustain its membership over the years. 

Now, it has around 300 members — a sharp decline from Whig-Clio’s glory days.

In 1983, Whig-Clio was engulfed in debate over a scheduled Friday night showing of the pornographic film “Debbie Does Dallas.” The choice provoked sharp criticism, both from members of Whig-Clio and the Women’s Center, which called for the showing to be canceled. Conversely, other members of Whig-Clio were enraged at the threat of cancellation, casting criticism as an attempt to censor the society.

Click here for link to full article

Ryan Quinn
Inside Higher Ed

Excerpt: A conservative Princeton University professor tried to give a speech this month at Washington College centering on the need for campus free speech. Students disrupted his talk and succeeded in ending it.

It was another example of what are often called student shoutdowns or “heckler’s vetoes”—though the meaning of that phrase is contested—disrupting conservative speakers. Perhaps most prominently this year, in March, Stanford University students disrupted a talk by Judge Kyle Duncan of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Ethan Hicks, ‘26
Princetonians for Free Speech Original Content

Excerpt: George F. Will, the legendary Washington Post columnist, delivered a lecture on September 13 that nearly filled Friend 101 to its 250-person capacity with a diverse audience of students, faculty, and community members. His most trenchant message was that “the magnificent legacy” of the great research universities can “be squandered in a generation, destroyed from within, not by outside forces.”

Ethan Hicks, ‘26
Princetonians for Free Speech

Excerpt: While Princeton remains ranked significantly below average in the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression 2024 ranking (placing 187th of 248 ranked schools), its commitment to academic freedom of expression in line with the Chicago Principles was renewed during freshman orientation for the Class of 2027. This year’s orientation activities featured a variety of mandatory and optional free speech events educating incoming students on their free speech rights.