At the same time that leading journalists and scholars are calling on college journalism programs to help fill the void left by the decline of newspapers, a court case in Illinois is raising questions about the legal status of student journalists that could have a chilling effect on the risks that journalism professors will ask their students to take.

"When I hear the official language [of the health care debate] it makes me suppose that this is a time when we need a lot more art that's not going to have answers that are in black and white. " Anna Deavere Smith to Bill Moyers, November 13, 2009

UPDATE 9/25 PM: The Washington Post reports that John Allen Muhammad was executed by lethal injection tonight as family members of his victims watched. He maintained his innocence until the end.

Of all of the claims and counterclaims spouted during yesterday's floor debate in the House of Representatives, I was most stunned by Rep. Joe Barton's assertion that 10-15 million uninsured young adults don't want health insurance:

UPDATE: At 10:07 pm, the Newark Star-Ledger announced over its live stream that the Associated Press has called the New Jersey Governor's race for Chris Christie.