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by Alexander Russo

Last week’s big education news story might have been the announcement that Facebook was hiring Campbell Brown to help with news partnerships.

Facebook, the social media giant, has been struggling to respond to criticism that its platform is being used to promote fake news and generate filter bubbles, among other things, and had been advertising for a news person.

Brown, the former CNN host who launched an education-focused news site called The 74 some 18 months back, was struggling to figure out how to cover a major player — Education Secretary nominee Betsy DeVos — who has also been a friend and funder of the site. But few anticipated that Brown’s and Facebook’s needs would overlap so neatly.

There was lots of coverage— some of it better than others. But none of it provided necessary context (about Brown’s increasingly awkward role as editor of The 74, among other things) or answered some key questions (about how Brown got the job and what happens next for The 74).

Moderator Campbell Brown listens as Republican presidential candidate, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie speaks during an education summit, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2015, in Londonderry, N.H. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)

Moderator Campbell Brown listens as Republican presidential candidate, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie speaks during an education summit, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2015, in Londonderry, N.H. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)

On Monday morning, Poynter Institute media columnist Jim Warren noted that several of the news stories about the decision left out key information about Brown’s background as an education advocate whose publication highlights reform priorities such as charter schools and accountability.

“A lack of context in reporting the announcement surely left most Times readers in the lurch as to why the choice of the former CNN and NBC reporter really is notable,” wrote Warren in the column. Though better than others, the New York Times coverage was still inadequate, according to Warren. “A few more paragraphs of background were called for.”

The NYT story described Brown as merely “a major player in the pitched political battles over charter schools, prominently clashing with teachers’ unions while coming out against teachers’ tenure.”

That description glosses over what Warren describes as Brown’s role in “pitched battles over teacher job protections” and lawsuits against tenure laws — a higher level of conflict over a much more specific and controversial set of issues.

Warren also dragged Campbell’s education outlet, The 74, for promoting “a specific advocacy agenda…under the banner of nonpartisan and unbiased journalism.”

In particular, he criticized the site for having hosted an event for Republican primary candidates for president that was sponsored by the American Federation for Children, a national foundation that advocates for school choice. Doing so “was akin to Exxon or the National Resources Defense Council acting as sole sponsor of a debate on the environment.”

I’m not so sure about that. While more context would certainly have been warranted, I think Warren somewhat overstates the case against The 74’s journalism and the Times’ coverage of the announcement.

News outlets host events featuring political candidates and elected officials all the time, often funded or sponsored by interested parties. For many years, NBC News’ “Education Nation” events were sponsored by education nonprofits and companies.  The New York Times’ annual education event is also sponsored by institutions and for-profit outfits.

Disclosure is required as is some semblance of balance in panelists and moderator questioning. But today’s journalistic standards don’t seem to go further than that.*

[Warren wrote in an email that he was not sure he could recall a counterpart to a presidential forum “where the sponsor had such a vested interest in one aspect of the subject matter.”]

In addition, there is no shortage of news outlets that claim to provide readers with unbiased journalism but still seem to exhibit certain ideological tendencies in their coverage.  The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, and others are obvious examples. Others might include the Washington Post and the New York Times. Take your pick.

More important, Warren and others might have understated the problems associated with Brown’s editorial leadership of The 74 since the announcement of DeVos as the Trump nominee for education secretary.

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So long?

The 74 has always struggled to walk what Nieman Lab’s Shan Wang called “the journalism-advocacy tightrope.” Already in its short history, The 74’s Editor-In-Chief had recused herself from overseeing coverage of Success Academy, New York City’s largest charter school network, on whose board she sits. Just a few weeks ago when the Trump education nominee was named, The 74 announced that Brown would limit her involvement in DeVos-related coverage but would remain editor-in-chief. But the arrangement didn’t last long.

So it might be said that Brown’s move — which seemed to surprise everyone — resulted as much from her and The 74’s need to make a change as anything else, in order to retain credibility.

Truth be told, there’s much left unknown.

Speculation aside, we don’t really know how Brown came to be in the running for the Facebook job, which was announced last month. (Brown and others at The 74 declined to comment on her decision to step down or respond to other questions.)

Nor do we know whether the site’s current funders — many of them drawn to Brown’s star power — have committed to funding the site going forward. (The site’s co-founder, Romy Drucker, has stated that The 74 will expand in 2017 with the addition of RealClear Education.)

Also unknown is whether Brown will be able to function as an effective intermediary between Facebook and major news outlets. Brown has forayed well outside of traditional journalism with her recent advocacy efforts, and is primarily known as a TV news personality.

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EdSec nominee Betsy DeVos and Campbell Brown at 2014 American Federation for Children event.

Last but not least, it’s important to note that coverage of the Brown announcement occurs as the national teachers unions and others are aiming to discredit if not derail the DeVos nomination.

The Michigan philanthropist has quickly become the unions’ Enemy Number One, replacing previous targets that have included former StudentsFirst head Michelle Rhee, former Obama education secretary Arne Duncan, and, well, Campbell Brown.

National teachers unions and their Democratic allies in Congress have made DeVos a particular target for scrutiny during the confirmation process.( Just last night, the Senate nomination hearing was rescheduled for next week.)

If Trump had picked someone less controversial as his education secretary nominee, if his opponents weren’t going all-out to try and delay or prevent some of his choices from joining his administration, and if Brown had been less closely tied to DeVos, there would have been much less pressure on Brown and The 74 to make such a big change.

Then again, Brown has started and abandoned projects in the past. In order to co-found The 74, Brown stepped down from day-t0-day oversight of Partnership for Educational Justice, a nonprofit she’d started just a couple of years before.

Related posts:
Unsolicited Advice On The Launch Of “The Seventy-Four”
Former CNN Host Unveils Education News Site To Mixed Reactions
About The Washington Post’s Campbell Brown Story
Questions About Campbell Brown’s “LA School Report” Rescue

*Disclosure: Some of foundations that have supported The 74, including the Gates and Broad foundations, also support The Grade. In the past, Brown and I have disagreed publicly over issues of journalism and substance.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alexander Russo

Alexander Russo

Alexander Russo is founder and editor of The Grade, an award-winning effort to help improve media coverage of education issues. He’s also a Spencer Education Journalism Fellowship winner and a book author. You can reach him at @alexanderrusso.

Visit their website at: https://the-grade.org/