If teachers are fired and students suspended for their Facebook posts, do we really have free speech? As we discuss on today’s podcast, just because speech is free doesn’t mean it is free of consequences, as the era of Facebook, Twitter, blogging and the like has taught us. (Either fortunately or unfortunately, the technology behind this hilarious Saturday Night Live webisode, which Carol Toler references during the podcast, isn’t yet available to protect us.) Plus, Toler tells us more about the good consequences of Facebook conversations between Lake Highlands teachers and students.

A tragic crime involving one of Lake Highlands’ own has left us with a lot of questions, including this one: How should a neighborhood magazine report on crime? Each month, in our True Crime article, we try to take something like a home burglary or a car break-in and break it down on a personal level by talking with the victimized neighborhood resident. And on the blog, when we know the victim or the accused, we write within that context. As shown from these comments, opinions vary on such a reporting stance. But, as we discuss on the podcast, unless a commenter is using profanity — directed at either the writer or another commenter — it’s pretty likely that the comment will remain posted. That’s part of our commitment to free speech, even when it consequently stings.

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