Prohibiting ads for happy hour at a local tavern may prevent some from learning of its existence, but it also violates a person's freedom of information. Granted, fake IDs and lax bartenders prevail, but it is not fair to target student publications in an attempt to curb underage drinking when other publications face no such restrictions. The free market makes it possible for businesses to advertise, and freedom of information makes it possible for newspapers to earn money through advertising. What Pennsylvania overlooks is freedom of responsibility. You would be hard-pressed to find an underage student who was not aware that he is breaking the law when he raised a solo cup of Fratty Lite to his lips.
Students are aware of the consequences.
They are also adults, and should be free to make choices. The law must be overturned, although such a decision will not eliminate threats to college media. A prohibition on alcohol ads in student publications is part of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's initiative to quell binge drinking. There is a real danger of such practice becoming widespread, and that will pose a serious problem to the integrity and credibility of campus newspapers. As a precedent, the concept is even more questionable.