You might find it strange for the opinion page of a newspaper - particularly this newspaper - to urge the government to restrict information.
Brace yourselves. The Washington chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union is urging the same thing.
Newspapers and the ACLU are usually allies in dragging government out of the shadows and telling the public as much as possible. In a case before the Washington Supreme Court, however, other interests are at stake. Does the public really need to know if a teacher has been accused of sexual misconduct - even if the allegations have not been substantiated by an investigation and are probably false?
If the teacher has been arrested or disciplined, the public certainly has a right to know. A mere accusation, however, doesn't rise to the level of news - especially when such an accusation can destroy a career. Teachers' livelihoods depend on how much they are trusted to be around students.
Justices are deciding whether or not school districts can withhold the names of teachers who have been accused of wrongdoing. Not investigated for it or disciplined for it. Simply accused of it.
The case stems from a 2002 public records request by the Seattle Times. Reporters were looking for records of misconduct allegations against teachers in Seattle, Bellevue and Federal Way. The ACLU says the school districts should be able to protect the identity of most of those teachers.
As strange as it is to be arguing in favor of concealing information, the ACLU is right. It would be easy to rush to the bulwarks of the First Amendment and say the information should be put before the public. Then the ghost of Sen. Joseph McCarthy appears.
He started his witch hunt for communists in the 1950s by finding the records of some out-of-date security investigations. The moldy reports meant absolutely nothing. Yet he dumped them all into the public record and started destroying people's lives.
Civil liberties are always a balancing act. Particular weight should be given to the First Amendment. Of course, even the First Amendment has limits. The people's right to know about unsubstantiated charges is overshadowed by other people's right not to have their lives destroyed. - T.H.
Clarification
An editorial April 8 stated none of the members of Swift Boat Veterans for Truth served with Sen. John Kerry in Vietnam. Some members claimed they served with Kerry, although no one in the group served on the swift boat Kerry commanded. - T.H.
