Cal State San Marcos hosted a branch until it ceased publishing due to legal action involving its staff.

The name of the paper is a reference to the eucalyptus trees that grow on the campus, the leaves of which are the sole source of food in a koala's diet.

In March 2002, Vice Chancellor Joseph W. Watson[5] wrote to "all academics... staff... and students at UCSD": "We condemn The Koala's abuse of the Constitutional guarantees of free expression and disfavor their unconscionable behavior."

Two days later, Director of Student Policy and Judicial Affairs Nicholas S. Aguilar nullified the hearing and ordered a retrial behind closed doors.

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) released documents and emails indicating that the University encouraged official complaints from MEChA President Ernesto Martinez, and instructed him on how to proceed legally and informally against The Koala.

In response to outrage generated by this article, Vice Chancellor Joseph W. Watson, whose office oversaw the trial of The Koala, defended Voz Fronteriza's "right to publish their views without adverse administrative action" because "student newspapers are protected by the first amendment of the U.S.

"[8][9] Thor L. Halvorssen, executive director of FIRE, cited Vice Chancellor Watson's and USCD's 1995 defense of Voz Fronteriza, and argued that "UCSD hypocritically and selectively violates both its own obligations to that Constitution and its own unconstitutional restrictions of speech on behalf of 'courtesy' and 'sensitivity.'"

'"[8][9] Other scandals which have garnered national media attention are: In 2005, George Lee Liddle 3rd, the former editor of UCSD's Koala registered the paper as a for-profit business and obtained office space and student organization status at San Diego State University, according to the New York Times.

[22] In the fall of 2013 students send a letter to SDSU's Freedom of Expression Committee calling for an end of the publications distribution on campus.

The content of the SDSU Koala is distinct from the UCSD branch and has been described[weasel words] as absurdist humor centering on student life, hedonistic lifestyles, and party culture.