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An Instagram post about Jeffrey Epstein’s ties to wealthy communities in Marin County, CA, turned one California student newspaper into a free-speech flash point. The students say they were just doing their homework.

Ben Mueller’s assignment for his journalism class was to tell a news story—any news story—in the form of an extended Instagram slideshow. He chose to comb the Epstein files for links to his home county—and he found thousands. www.wired.com/story/epstei...

Two days later, on February 12, Mueller posted his story to the Instagram feed of the Redwood Bark, his school’s student-run publication. More than 4,000 people liked the story. The comments filled up with praise: “This is the kind of journalism we need.” www.wired.com/story/epstei...

About a week and a half later, his journalism teacher called with bad news: Bonnouvrier, the modeling agent, was threatening to sue the district. And now the superintendent was demanding that the Bark either redact Bonnouvrier’s name or delete the slide entirely. www.wired.com/story/epstei...

So the next day, during their lunch break at school, the students lawyered up. Find out what happened next here: www.wired.com/story/epstei...