(Peter Cihelka/AP)University of Mary Washington officials could have done more to protect students from online harassment, a federal appeals court said Wednesday in a ruling with implications for free speech and anonymous social media mes­sages on college campuses. Mary Washington officials had argued that blocking access to a private social media app risked violating the free speech rights of other students at the Fredericksburg school, which has about 4,400 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. Too often, Katz said, college students suffer harassment from peers and others who hide in the anonymity of cyberspace. They felt threatened and unsafe and pressed university officials to take steps to disable the app on campus. The appeals court ruling sends the case back to the lower court.

Source: Washington Post December 19, 2018 19:56 UTC