The Campus Censorship Case That Helped Launch James Taranto's Career

James Taranto, the acerbic wit behind The Wall Street Journal's highly successful "Best of the Web" column (and a former Reason intern), published a long and very worth reading account Friday of the censorship case that marked his term at Cal State Northridge's (pretty damned good) Daily Sundial newspaper in the late 1980s. At the center of the dispute was this UCLA Daily Bruin cartoon, which Taranto was punished for republishing:

It's a fine piece for anyone interested in First Amendment jurisprudence and the dawn of campus political correctness, and is surprisingly generous toward Taranto's adversary (whose recent retirement prompted his trip down memory lane), but I especially enjoyed the very different roles played by Reason and the Los Angeles Times. Whole thing here.