The Skier Scribbler published its first anonymous article earlier this school year: ICE Launches Concerning Recruitment Campaign Throughout US, Including Denver. It is extremely rare for a newspaper to publish an anonymous article. In fact, the New York Times has only published seven anonymous articles since 1972.
One section of the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics states that journalists are responsible for “Be Accountable and Transparent.” So this raises the question: Is publishing something anonymously ethical? According to traditional journalistic ethics, no, it is not. However, in today’s political environment, there are some exceptions.
Most newspapers agree that anonymity can be granted to a journalist if the topic or stance they are writing about has a sufficiently high likelihood of negatively affecting the journalist’s future well-being, safety, and prosperity.
At a high school level, the two main concerns are whether the article may impact the journalist’s social well-being and college applications.
Censorship has been top of mind for many Americans due to President Trump’s actions regarding the media. Since January 2025, Trump has implemented numerous media bans on which journalists have access to presidential press conferences and other opportunities for interviews. Possibly most notably, the banning of the Wall Street Journal from Air Force One and the resulting $10 million defamation lawsuit.
Due to Trump’s affiliation with the Republican Party, much of the censorship is focused on more liberal leaning publications. AHS students on the other hand, if they match local trends, are typically supporters of the Democratic Party. As a result, conservative views are more likely to be attacked.
Some readers may remember the highly controversial article: Being Red in a Sea of Blue: Thoughts and Beliefs. In this article, the journalist, Chase Slesinger-Hall, discussed his choice to support the Republican Party and how that can be difficult for a young person living in a liberal community.
As a member of the newspaper and someone who knows the writer, I have witnessed firsthand how he has experienced discrimination and a lack of compassion as a result of publishing this article and expressing his views.
“It feels like people have preconceived notions of me, and there have been times where I didn’t feel welcome in many spaces because it’s obvious I wasn’t,” Slesinger-Hall said.
As student journalists, we have very close contact with our audience: teachers, parents, the local community, and fellow students. For one, this means we have a good idea of what the public wants to hear. But it also means the consequences of our opinions are deeply felt.
While social exclusion and rumours can be deeply hurtful, an arguably greater threat is the perception from teachers.
“Teachers had noticed, and I had gotten sarcastic comments too, where it seemed as if teachers felt disbelief and disappointment in me,” Slesinger-Hall said. “A recording of a teacher talking negatively about my family, the article, my intelligence, and my family’s status, even got leaked.”
As someone who chooses not to identify with any political party, I am in constant fear of angering one side and feeling the consequences in my school.
The culture at AHS has silenced me. While this hinders my ability to become a better writer and journalist, it also hurts the community. The Skier Scribbler has become a one-sided news source. As a result, we are failing to truly inform our audience about real-world issues and beliefs.
So while some readers may be disappointed that the Skier Scribbler published an anonymous article and that media censorship on a national level is increasing at an alarming rate, I ask them to reflect on how we as a school react to differing opinions and subconsciously create our own censorship.
