18. Online publication of decoy

As editors of the Richland Chronicle newspaper and decoy humor magazine, we have followed self-imposed guidelines to this point to govern our print publication. With the imminent publishing of our publications on the World Wide Web, we hereby establish the following guidelines for web publication. The editors of this and future student publications at Richland College are solely responsible for enforcing these guidelines.

decoy is protected under the First Amendment of the United States of America and is privy to the right of freedom of the press. By establishing these guidelines, we are in no way surrendering our guaranteed rights to freedom of the press and freedom of speech. These guidelines have been developed because we have a responsibility to the Internet public and our community to publish material that is appropriate for its intended audience. However, decoy has been and can continue to be a vehicle to contribute to serious discussion of controversial subjects, and many articles have substantial value to add to the Internet dialogue on these subjects, and therefore should be available online. As Richland College student publications begin to publish on the Internet, it is necessary that guidelines concerning web publication be established for the humor magazine, decoy.

Because the Richland College web site is geared to a general audience, not the college/adult audience decoy targets in print, there is certain content that is not appropriate for Internet publication.

As students currently overseeing the publication of the Richland Chronicle, decoy and the Digital Chronicle, we have developed, and will be the only agents of enforcement of, the following self-governing guidelines for determining what content will and will not be published online:

Stories promoting the use of alcohol or illegal drugs will not be published on the decoy web site.

Stories that are sexually explicit will not be published in the decoy web site.

Short “tirade” articles (such as Rants and Raves), stories that advocate or allude to threats of inflicting bodily harm or threaten public safety, and fake classified ads are also prohibited in the decoy web site as we often take literary license with these sections in the print edition.

Stories that are fake and concocted for the entertainment value of the reader in the print edition are prohibited from the decoy web site, as they might be misleading.

Curse words are not allowed in the print version of decoy and henceforth are not allowed in the online version. The students who produce decoy follow the same policy as The Dallas Morning News does concerning obscenities: (“Obscenities offend many readers and often divert attention from the story,” The Dallas Morning News Stylebook.)

Pictures and or graphics that are considered adult in nature or content are also prohibited.

The editor-in-chief of the Richland Chronicle, the editor of the Digital Chronicle and the editors of decoy will work together closely to select decoy stories appropriate for Internet publication. They alone will be held responsible for the content of the decoy web site.