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A controversial strip club ad that targets co-eds at Texas State University has been pulled from the campus newspaper. The ad was for a San Antonio night spot called Sugars. While it won’t be in the next edition of the University Star, it has sparked an on-going discussion about Freedom of the Press and if a school newspaper is the appropriate place for a strip club Help Wanted ad.
At a campus garage, on the West side of Texas State University, Raemi Walker, a Junior, works 3 days a week to earn some much needed cash.
"If I didn't have it, I'd probably would not be able to do anything fun or be in an organization,” said Walker.
One job she isn't interested in doing appeared earlier this week in the campus newspaper. Sugars, a San Antonio night club- paid $3,000 to run several half page ads in the University Star newspaper. The strip club claimed co-ed's can “Pay Your Tuition” by working three shifts a week. While Walker wasn’t impressed, she was a little disappointed.
"There's plenty of little jobs around campus and around San Marcos, that, that shouldn’t be promoted by the school,” said Walker.
The University Star operates like a main stream newspaper according to officials with Texas State. There is no interference by school administrators but there is Faculty Advisor. Bob Bajackson has that advisory position and told FOX7 the ad copy was vetted.
"And it starts with the Account Executive, they discuss it, then they inform the editor, and if the Editor doesn’t have a problem with it, the Editorial Board looks at it, if they don’t have a problem with it, the decision is made.
Several key members in the editorial process are women, and Bajackson said they were not offended by the ad and neither was he. The ad also cleared 2 legal reviews, one by the University the other by the Student Press Law center, a Washington DC based non-profit that helps campus news organizations with First Amendment issues.
Texas State originally was a teachers college. A statue to its most famous teacher LBJ, is located in what's known as the Quad. The school has grown into a major University and reaction to the ad in the paper is about as diverse as the campus itself.
"If it should be in any newspaper, maybe the city, but not to set standards for collegiate students that, that’s ok,” said Tamera Crawford a Junior from Houston.
There were some who did not have a problem with the ad, like Freshman Tim Trujillo.
"I think it is a little insulting to say something like that is inappropriate, I feel that if a young lady feels comfortable doing something like that to get money to pay for their school, to do better things with their life, then I say go for it."
The decision to pull the final run of the ad, because of the growing controversy, was made public Friday afternoon. Bajackson said the nightclub was given a partial refund. The General Manager of Sugars was not available to comment about the paper's decision.