STUDENT FREE SPEECH VERSUS SOCIAL MEDIA VETTING: A LOOK AT U.S. AND INDIAN UNIVERSITY POLICIES

Recent news about the Donald Trump administration's move on enhanced screening, including "social media vetting" of foreign students, has caused a stir. Experts say that the free speech rights of U.S. citizens are protected by the First Amendment to their Constitution.

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Though the speech of immigrants is protected as well, there is no explicit bar on deportation, a lacuna used by the Trump administration.

The social media vetting debate has left students in India, many of whom aspire to go to the U.S. for higher studies, more conscious about the consequences of their social media activities. Though the scale, consequences, and the level of scrutiny are heightened with the Trump administration's move, social media vetting is not a new issue for Indian students.

Typical social media policies of Indian education institutions are restrictive and explicitly bar several aspects.

U.S. universities, too, have for a while had guidelines on social media usage by students and staff. Indian educational institutes, too, have drafted policies to keep in check the social media activities of students. The difference, though, is that at the university level in the U.S., these policies have been intended more towards students' safety from phishing scams, being misconstrued online, and university brand communications. The guidelines recognise the right of students to express their opinions freely. They, however, do encourage students to post a disclaimer that these views are personal and do not represent the university. For instance, Harvard Business School's guidelines specify that it is not the university's role to police or punish the online expression of individual members of the community, unless it violates existing University or School policy.