Date of Graduation

5-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts in Journalism

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Journalism

Advisor/Mentor

Dr. Bobbie Foster

Committee Member

Dr. Michael McCoy

Second Committee Member

Dr. Lucy Brown

Third Committee Member

Dr. Cory Mixdorf

Abstract

The goal of this research is to gain more insight into collegiate journalism course syllabi and the First Amendment. The First Amendment is a foundational aspect for a career in journalism, and one way to learn how college journalism students are interacting with the First Amendment is to conduct a qualitative analysis of the syllabi. A syllabus is the contract between professor and student for the course; therefore, it should contain the most important information relating to the course. 47 syllabi were collected from the School of Journalism and Strategic Media from the Spring 2025 semester. After reading through each syllabus and collecting data, results demonstrated that 32 of the syllabi mentioned the First Amendment. The most frequent mention of the First Amendment was the word “copyright,” as a part of boiler plate language for professors showcasing their First Amendment rights over their course materials.  This research compared different courses and analyzed each mention of the First Amendment. In conclusion, the majority of syllabi mentioned the First Amendment, but not necessarily in a way that suggests the course will teach students about the First Amendment.

Keywords

First Amendment; syllabi; journalism; college; freedom of speech; freedom of press

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