While we're on the topic, Checker had this to say of the New York City ed department's new Truth Squad (from the same New York Sun article):
"I'd rather see them use their money to fix NCLB or to give a kid a voucher," Mr. Finn said. "But I really do see this as a kind of natural evolution of a long-standing government activity."
I'd like to see that, too. On the other hand, I'd argue that the ed department's aggressive PR machine serves an important, under-appreciated role.
Readers of the Sunday New York Times find each week a rented column by union head Randi Weingarten, a space in which she typically appeals to the newspaper's wide, influential readership to oppose sensible reforms. The Times and the city's other dailies also run her (usually preposterous) comments any time Mayor Bloomberg or Schools Chancellor Joel Klein propose new ideas, a great many of which have real merit. And while Flypaper unequivocally has just cause when it elects on rare occasions to pillory a proposal out of the Big Apple, it's equally clear that many of the bloggers falling under the Truth Squad's watchful eye are guilty of employing the same warped logic that Weingarten wields on a regular basis.
Considering the proven power of unions and their supporters to wage effective media campaigns against important reforms in public education, it seems to me we should be asking not Why does the department of ed have such a big PR office?, but rather, Why has it taken this long for the department of ed to adequately staff its PR office?
