Penn State removed nearly three dozen racks containing its independent student-produced newspaper from on-campus locations this week because politics-related ads on the racks violated school policy.
The Daily Collegian reports they were not notified of the racks' removal Wednesday night and have not been told where they are being stored. However, they said they expected the racks to be returned sometime Friday without the ads.
The newspaper said there were about 35 racks overall inside various buildings on the school's campus in State College, with three running an ad for Vice President Kamala Harris and six running voter registration ads in poster space above the newspapers. The other racks did not have posters.
The newspaper said it received feedback from alumni and students about the ads, though it was not clear if the comments were supportive and/or critical. The Daily Collegian said it was notified of the university’s concerns Wednesday via an off-the-record conversation.
There was a discussion with the newspaper’s general manager, Wayne Lowman, about the ads possibly violating university rules. But the newspaper said Lowman was never notified of plans to remove the newsstands.
“I still haven’t talked to anyone from the university. I’ve made that request, to talk to whoever made the decision,” Lowman told the newspaper. “I don’t think whoever’s making these decisions has thought through the impact — what are they trying to accomplish?”
Wyatt DuBois, the school's director of University Public Relations, told The Associated Press on Friday that Penn State is not challenging the distribution of newspapers on the racks or otherwise. However, it is prohibiting the newspaper's sale of advertising space on university premises that is occurring outside of the actual publication, since that violates two university policies.
The racks were removed for only a short time to remove the advertising, DuBois said, and are in place so that the papers can be easily accessed on campus. The display of the paper version of the Daily Collegian is permitted, as the University supports free news and information sources specifically for its students, he said.
The newspaper's editor did not respond Friday to messages seeking comment about the removal of the racks.
The newspaper utilizes advertising sales as a revenue source and notes candidates from both major parties have purchased ads in previous campaigns. It said the importance of advertising revenue has become increasingly vital after receiving a 100% funding cut from the university’s general fund in 2023, beginning this school year.
FILE- In this Nov. 9, 2017, file photo people walk by Old Main on the Penn State University main campus in State College, Pa. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors have subpoenaed the director overseeing New York City's office for asylum seekers, the latest sign of escalating federal scrutiny of Mayor Eric Adams' administration.
Molly Schaeffer, who leads the city's Office of Asylum Seeker Operations, received the information sharing request from federal authorities Friday morning, according to a person familiar with the matter. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the subpoena.
It was not immediately clear what information federal authorities were seeking or whether the subpoena related to multiple ongoing federal law enforcement investigations swirling around Adams, a first-term Democrat and former police captain.
Schaeffer directed questions to the mayor's deputy mayor for communications, Fabien Levy, who declined to comment on the investigation. “We expect all team members to fully comply with any ongoing inquiry,” Levy wrote in a text message. “Molly Schaeffer is an integral part of our team and works hard every day to deliver for New Yorkers.”
Schaeffer has not been accused of any wrongdoing. Federal prosecutors often issue subpoenas in a hunt for evidence and potential witnesses, not necessarily because they believe the recipient has committed a crime.
Emailed inquiries to the U.S. attorney's offices in Manhattan and Brooklyn were not returned.
Earlier this month, federal authorities seized the phones of several top advisers to the mayor, including his schools chancellor, two deputy mayors and a longtime adviser who oversees contracts at migrant shelters. They also seized the phones of the police commissioner, Edward Caban, who resigned last week.
Those seizures are believed to be related to probes overseen by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan, which are looking at least in part into whether the relatives of top-ranking Adams' aides used their family connection for financial gain.
In July, Adams received his own subpoena from federal prosecutors seeking information from him, his campaign, and City Hall. That request came eight months after FBI agents seized the mayor's phones and an iPad as he was leaving an event in Manhattan. The subpoenas requested information about the mayor’s schedule, his overseas travel and potential connections to the Turkish government, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigations.
Adams also has not been accused of any wrongdoing.
A separate federal probe led by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Brooklyn is believed to be examining Adam's director of Asian Affairs, Winnie Greco.
Schaeffer has led the office of asylum seeker operations since its creation last year, overseeing the city’s response to the arrival of more than 200,000 migrants and the wide-ranging effort to house and feed the surge of new arrivals.
She previously worked for Adams’ predecessor, Mayor Bill de Blasio.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks to members of the press at a news conference in New York, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
