Student Press Law Center, VA
01-25-07
U. Kansas student newspaper, local commercial paper disagree over distribution
Kansan article cites previous distribution case from late 1990s
KANSAS — In the midst of a distribution dispute with a competing local
commercial paper, the student newspaper at the University of Kansas has
suspended a proposed expansion of its off-campus circulation.
Representatives of The University Daily Kansan and The Kansas Journal World
met Wednesday in an effort to resolve the disagreement, the nature of which has
not been publicly discussed.
The University Daily Kansan announced the postponement of distribution last
week. The student paper had planned to distribute 600 newspapers inside
various businesses around town. Each site would have had two to five papers,
according to a Kansan article.
Although sources remain tight-lipped about the reasons for the dispute, the
situation is not unprecedented. An article in Friday’s Daily Kansan refers to a
“similar situation” between the Iowa State Daily and The (Ames) Tribune during
the late 1990s.
In that disagreement, The Tribune asserted that the Iowa State University
student newspaper, because it receives some state funds, was competing
illegally with the community newspaper. The Tribune said that the student Daily
should not be allowed to solicit advertisements or distribute its newspapers
outside of the campus if it receives school financial support.
After three years of litigation, the dispute was settled out of court with an
agreement that restricted the student newspaper’s distribution.
The University Daily Kansan receives money from student fees, which goes
directly to staff salaries. The rest of the newspaper’s budget comes from
advertising revenues, which pay for the newspaper’s rented space on campus
and printing costs. The university provides utilities for the rented space as well as
faculty support.
Wednesday’s meeting, which was the first in a planned series, was generally well
received by those who attended. Gaby Souza, editor in chief of The University
Daily Kansan, said she hopes the dispute will be resolved by the end of the
semester.
By Brian Hudson, SPLC staff writer