Propaganda War, Scientific Doubts, and Truth in Advertising

Teacher Magazine ’s take on education news from around the Web, Sept. 30-Oct. 5.

No doubt some educators have felt that, figuratively speaking, a Cold War is being waged over the direction of education policy. Now it turns out that under former Secretary of Education Rod Paige, the Education Department disseminated “covert propaganda” to advance the Bush administration’s schools agenda. Those are the words used in a new Government Accountability Office report describing the department’s arrangement with Armstrong Williams, the nationally syndicated columnist paid to promote the No Child Left Behind Act, as well as its role in the distribution of a prepackaged news clip extolling the virtues of the law. The GAO, Congress’ investigative arm, said the department’s actions violated federal law. President Bush condemned the arrangement with Williams when it first became public in January: “Our agenda ought to be able to stand on its own...