A recent poll of American high school students’ views ongovernment censorship is troubling.

Of nearly 100,000 high school students surveyed at 544 publicand private schools across the United States, only half saidnewspapers should be allowed to freely publish without governmentapproval of stories. And one-third of the teens said the FirstAmendment goes “too far” in granting Americans the freedoms ofreligion, speech, press and assembly.

We are nearly at a loss for words that our nation’s youngergeneration – and our future leaders – do not realize the value of afree press nor of the other freedoms provided by the FirstAmendment.

In the same poll, conducted by researchers at the University ofConnecticut, the high schoolers were asked if people should beallowed to express unpopular views. Only 83 percent of studentssaid they should.

Keep in mind they weren’t asked about offensive or threateningviews – merely unpopular ones.

On a local level – and concerning in its own right – is theresult of our own most recent informal and unscientific DAILYLEADER online poll.

In the survey that concluded Friday, we asked visitors to oursite the following question: “Do you favor more governmentrestrictions on the content of newspapers, magazines, radio,television, books, music, movies and other forms ofcommunication?”

While the majority of respondents – 69.1 percent – said no, morethan 30 percent of visitors to our Web site who voted believed thegovernment should exercise more control over these forms ofexpression.

Given the tendency of some in the American media to suppress,sensationalize or bend the truth, perhaps it come as littlesurprise that some in the public would favor government oversight.This failing of the mass media, however, is no sound justificationfor eroding the very freedoms upon which our society wasestablished.

That such a large percentage of any polling sample would expressopposition to the guarantees of the First Amendment is troubling -though, naturally, we support their right to do so.