Incident details
- Date of incident
- May 11, 2026
- Location
- Long Beach, California
Long Beach City College’s student newspaper, The Viking News, reported that its co-editor-in-chief, Paloma Maciel, faced discipline by the California school on May 11, 2026, after her reporting.
Student journalist Paloma Maciel faced sanctions on May 11, 2026, after Long Beach City College accused her of harassment while she was reporting on a controversial student election at the California school.
Maciel, co-editor-in-chief of student newspaper The Viking News, reported that the student government election would be rerun after concerns emerged that ineligible people, including nonactive students, may have been allowed to vote.
On May 8, Maciel interviewed the dean of students about the topic. In the same building, she tried to talk to the student activities adviser, who declined to comment, she told the Long Beach Post. Maciel waited outside the adviser’s office until the dean told her the office was busy and later said it was closed; she then left.
Three days later, the college’s Office of Student Conduct notified Maciel that a complaint had been filed against her, The Viking News reported. The notice alleged that she had “engaged in persistent and increasingly harassing and aggressive behavior under the pretense of requesting interviews.” It also claimed she had “physically blocked” an administrator’s path, causing the employee to seek shelter in another office. Maciel, whose upcoming graduation was approaching, faced suspension or academic probation.
“I wasn’t doing anything wrong,” Maciel told the Long Beach Post. “In my eyes, I was just reporting.”
Maciel attended a disciplinary hearing on June 2 with the college’s executive vice president of student services, where she answered questions and gave her account of the incident. The following day, the college informed her that she had not violated the student code of conduct and that no disciplinary action would be taken.
Carl Kemp, a spokesperson for Long Beach City College, declined to comment on the confidential student conduct investigation in an email to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker. He asserted that reporting and writing in the newspaper is not a violation of campus policies.
Maciel could not be reached for comment.
The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker catalogs press freedom violations in the United States. Email tips to [email protected].
