By Barb Shelly, Kansas City Star editorial page columnist

Free speech can be a messy thing. Somebody needs to tell that to Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy.

The justice, usually a defender of the First Amendment, wasn't exactly free and easy when it came to coverage of a talk he gave at Dalton, a private high school in Manhattan.

Kennedy's staff insisted on vetting coverage of his talk by the school newspaper. His office made a couple of "minor tweaks" and "tidied up" a few quotes.

Totally the wrong lesson for the high school journalists. A free press doesn't mix well with image control. Kennedy said what he said and he should have let the chips fall where they may.

Obviously the student journalists did a good job if the justice's office felt that only a few tweaks were in order. Kennedy's staff should have trusted them from the outset.

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