Why the Campus Press Freedom Act can’t wait

In February 2025, The SPARK, the student publication of Camarines Sur Polytechnic College, published mock election results online. The data showed one particular gubernatorial candidate trailing behind his opponents. The reaction was swift. The candidate dismissed the post as “fake” and school officials reportedly threatened the student editors with legal action unless they took it down.

They refused. Standing by their numbers, the students called the threat what it was – censorship. Their defiance ignited a flashpoint. Student publications across the Philippines rallied in solidarity, reigniting calls for long-overdue legislation, the Campus Press Freedom Act.

What happened to The SPARK isn’t an anomaly. Across the country, student journalists are being silenced through budget cuts, libel threats and administrative intimidation.

According to the College Editors Guild of the Philippines, these aren’t isolated cases. They form a disturbing pattern of suppression.

The Campus Journalism Act of 1991 or Republic Act No. 7079, was groundbreaking in its time. But it’s frozen in a pre-digital era. It has no teeth, no sustainable source of funds and no real protections. Not even a mention of online journalism. It leaves student publications legally exposed and financially vulnerable.

And the threats have evolved. Today, student journalists do more than run print newspapers. They blog, podcast and manage digital platforms but only to face cyberattacks, online harassment, shadow banning and threats in return.

Take TomasinoWeb, the student media arm of the University of Santo Tomas. It came under administrative pressure after posting critical commentary on social media. Or consider the countless unnamed editors whose funding has been arbitrarily frozen, paralyzing their publications. These are not isolated cracks but they’re structural fractures.

The Campus Press Freedom Bill may get a second chance in the 20th Congress. It aims to do what RA 7079 cannot – guarantee editorial independence, protect digital publishing, ensure sustainable funding and hold violators accountable. Student publications need reliable resources to support their day-to-day operations and not token budgets that can be weaponized against them. But more than that, the bill affirms a fundamental truth: student journalists aren’t “just students.” They are journalists. Period.

If we fail to defend the student press, we silence the voices most willing to challenge power. We kill curiosity before it matures. We let censorship seep in while no one’s watching.

In an era when disinformation and civic disengagement plague society like a cancer, defending the campus press is no longer optional but it is a civic responsibility. A free student press isn’t just a privilege. It’s democracy in training wheels. And it needs our protection now more than ever.

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Daniel Ace Mercado previously led the “Ang Mandaragit” of Pamatawan Integrated School and Supreme Secondary Learner Government of PIS and Subic National High School.