In a weekend editorial the Boston Globe establishes the important principle that the funders of interest groups should be identified to the public. Then the paper went about establishing that this principle should not apply to interest group allies of the Boston Globe. I’ll fill in what the Globe left out. Here is the principle:…
Month: May 2023
The Big Shill: Jon Keller and Keri Rodrigues Conjure Some Sunday Morning Hocus Pocus
Jon Keller hosted Keri Rodrigues of the Walton-Koch National Parents Union on Sunday to plump the corporate wish list on MCAS testing. If you don’t accept the masquerade the appearance was revealing. The part about the statewide testing falls against the unstated backdrop of teachers’ unions seeking legislative modification of MCAS. The Walton political team…
Democrats for Education Reform: Let’s Meet the Funders
I often point out Democrats for Education Reform ’s far-right patrons like Rupert Murdoch and the Waltons but I haven’t given DFER MA’s Boston patrons enough attention. Let’s try. First, DFER is really at least three different legal structures under one roof. There’s the DFER PAC and DFER SuperPAC which have to report contributions and…
Educators for Excellence is Providing Lunch, The Waltons and Boston Oligarchs Are Picking Up the Tab
According to a recent Boston Teachers Union newsletter, Educators for Excellence “has been hosting free lunches at schools.” Let’s look at who’s picking up the tab. I won’t make you hang in suspense—E4E is a puppet of billionaire privatizers, Alice Walton’s fantasy of what a well-behaved teachers’ union should be. Remember Banned in Boston (Globe):…
My Unpublished Globe OpEd Urging Better Education Interest Group Coverage
A while back I submitted the following oped to the Boston Globe. It was not selected for publication. I’ll leave it here as submitted and have more to say about it soon. The Globe covers numerous aspects of education but never explores the enabling force behind interest groups like Massachusetts Parents United or Parents Defending…
Why Do the Walton Family and Charles Koch Fund Voices for Academic Equity Member National Parents Union?
“Voices for Academic Equity,” is presenting a report on MCAS today and I could go through the Voices member groups and their funders but let’s focus on Voices member National Parents Union and the Vela Education Fund. Vela is a joint venture of the Walton Family Foundation and Charles Koch Institute. It provides funding for…