Oh look, another group (this time the school district) afraid of the fact the Internet gives them ever reducing control over their own narratives. Good.

oh ma gawd, i has a 'puter and some html skill. how i not a journaliz?

The name of the blog is actually Seattle Public Schools community blog.

http://saveseattleschools.blogspot.com

They've also banned Goddess Kring.

I get that Melissa can be a bit much. Not every interaction I have had with her I have positive memories of. However, who the hell else actually covers Seattle Schools in the way that she does? While she most definitely presents opinion, she also presents facts that she bases that opinion off of.

Total School District Fail, which = total School Board Fail, specifically those who voted to keep Goodloe-Johnson. If it wasn't for the fact that she's better on the outside than in, I'd want Westbrook to take on Martin-Morris.

Thank God elections are just over a year away for those races!

Once more the elitists make the rules and the founding fathers turn over in their graves.

Except for the ones that dueled. They were always a bit radical.

@4 darn. Is she still on public access? I didn't know she did school board coverage too ...

One person's unbiased coverage is another's biased. And as far as the SPJ code of ethics goes, I doubt Melissa has 'signed on' to this, but reviewing their principles I don't see any that Melissa violates in her reporting.

Honestly, SPS just didn't want her there because they don't like her critical analysis. They didn't want any embarrassing questions asked, never mind whether they are legitimate or not.

The fundamental truth that no one can deny is that Melissa's blog is *the* place to go in Seattle for timely and accurate reporting of education developments. No one else covers the stuff Melissa does. She does a great service for the community and for SPS families, and quite honestly for SPS itself (whether they like it or not).

The fact that she has strong opinions about some details of the districts behavior and policies does not lessen the value of her reporting.

As I posted on the Save Seattle Schools Blog, Melissa ought not to feel picked on... this refusal to talk to people who have opposing views or who ask 'awkward' questions about the state of education within SPS and the implementation of the education reform agenda around the nation, is a growing national phenomenon... I've been 'unfriended and blocked from some of the best places in town and nationally - ALLIANCE FOR EDUCATION, OUR SCHOOLS COALITION (the Alliance's completely manufactured bastard offspring), LEAGUE OF EDUCATION VOTERS, STAND FOR CHILDREN, and now, NBC's EDUCATION NATION SUMMIT PAGE....

Over the past 48 hours, I've been involved in a little dance with NBC.

My problem with the national education "SUMMIT" NBC is hosting next week is that the 'invitation-only' panel is stacked with pro education privatisation reformers and not a parent in sight.... nor any working teachers... http://www.educationnation.com/

The guest list is here:
http://ofprincipalconcern-educationworld…

Guests range from Michelle Rhee to Joel Klein to Arne Duncan; the guests are all Broad or Gates Foundation people or charter school chain owners.

National education system reform under discussion - where are the parents?

And look at the Sponsors...
http://www.educationnation.com/index.cfm…

All have a vested interest in making sure this education 'deform' agenda implementation is completed.

I challenged NBC on why its leaving out of the discussion the biggest stakeholders in this equation, and so far, no response....

I pointed them in the direction of highly informed, articulate people who were well qualified to participate in this 'dialogue' - no response except to block me....

Yesterday they were trying to buy my silence by offering an op ed space on the Education Nation website, today they've unfriended me and taken all my critical comments (and the research and references supporting those comments) off their pages...

Here's the chronology, starting yesterday morning (Wednesday 15 Sept)...

Had an interesting (power and control) phone conversation with Ryan Osborn, the producer of this website/programme.... http://www.educationnation.com

http://www.facebook.com/educationnation?…¬if_t=feed_comment_reply

I couldn't get him to agree to put parents on the panel (he said they tried to get Diane Ravitch - not a parent, but a reform critic - a step in the right direction - but she wasnt available; I suggested Professor Zhao from Michingan University as an alternative) but to buy me off and shut me up they've offered me an op ed piece on their website...

Who has anything they want to say??????? No limit, just no slander!

Here's what I wrote back (on the Education Nation facebook page):
I'd like to thank Ryan at NBC for contacting me and having a telephone conversation a few minutes ago. Ryan and I have something in common - we are both journalists with an ethical responsibility for providing both sides of an discussion/issue.

While Ryan said he/NBC had heard our concerns he could not offer parents (the largest stakeholders in this education reform equation) and other critics of the education 'reform' agenda a place on the panel.

He said that Diane Ravitch had been invited but was not free on these dates... I suggested he invite Professor Zhao - he did not give me an answer one way or another.

He did very generously offer me the opportunity to write an op-ed piece for the Education Nation website, which I will gratefully accept... though I did point out that an op-ed hidden somewhere on a website that people have to search to find, is no match in terms of airing contrary perspectives for the public exposure the very wealthy education reformers will be getting from this summit.

Sadly, most of us parents around the country do not have the billions of dollars that the Gates, Broad and Milken Foundations and Raytheon, Phoenix University and Microsoft etc have to throw at this effort to mould and control the discussion... But I will take what I can get, albeit a very small bone....

Ryan did give me some feedback I shall bear in mind - he felt my many posts were repetitive, intimidating and shutting out of other points of view... I will think on that - though how that is possible on a facebook page, which has no limit on comment postings, I dont know....

And I then added the comment:
I just had feedback from someone in contact with Diane Ravitch that while she is in California on the dates of the Summit, she did offer to provide a taped segment as her contribution to the debate... apparently that was not good enough... quite sad, really...

Then this morning, I got this message from Ryan:
We are getting complaints from other users that you are dominating conversation. Please consider this is a warning. If your tone continues, we will have to block you. Moderation is a necessary part of keeping a civil discussion online. Thank you.
If you want to write an op-ed for our website you can submit it to my email. Thank you.

I wrote back and asked who was complaining, saying it was only fair that I know my accusers - anyone can google me and find out all about me, but anonymous complaints, not made directly to me are rather hard to prove and not quite playing fair.

I noted that there were first amendment issues at stake here, that NBC as a 'news' organisation had a public duty and ethical responsibility to present both sides of the issue and it currently was not... and that, as a fellow journalist, I was concerned about that....

I posted a list of links of material that people might like to check out that put forward a view alternative to the panellists - such as the film Race to Nowhere (http://www.racetonowhere.com/) and also listed some individuals and parent groups around the country NBC could approach, who would be more than happy to give the parent voice to this 'SUMMIT'...

No response - just blocked from posting and commenting, even 'liking' other peoples' posts and comments :-(

I note the several financial conflicts of interest NBC is caught in by hosting this summit..

One person's unbiased coverage is another's biased. And as far as the SPJ code of ethics goes, I doubt Melissa has 'signed on' to this, but reviewing their principles I don't see any that Melissa violates in her reporting.

Honestly, SPS just didn't want her there because they don't like her critical analysis. They didn't want any embarrassing questions asked, never mind whether they are legitimate or not.

The fundamental truth that no one can deny is that Melissa's blog is *the* place to go in Seattle for timely and accurate reporting of education developments. No one else covers the stuff Melissa does. She does a great service for the community and for SPS families, and quite honestly for SPS itself (whether they like it or not).

The fact that she has strong opinions about some details of the districts behavior and policies does not lessen the value of her reporting.

There is legal precedent for this. I wish I could remember the name of the case. But a Democratically aligned political blog out of Missouri was denied press credentials, sued, and the court found that blogs ARE to be considered press organizations for purposes of access.

Westbrook works hard to be considered a journalist, Stranger writers work hard not to be considered journalists. All of y'all are anyway, though.

@12 true.

Although the Stranger ones are way more fun at parties.

So if the school district would give the Stranger a press pass but doesn't regularly attend the school board meetings, why doesn't the Stranger give the lady a pass as long as she agrees to allow (but not require) the Stranger to re-post her blog entries resulting from use of the pass?

Surprisingly, Seattle Schools are mostly a lot of people raising each other salaries for no good reason, rather than "teaching kids".

WA schools. Last in the nation.

@14 - good idea. Stranger folks, why don't you make her your Seattle School District reporter/blogger? (unpaid of course, maybe an intern?) Then she can get her press pass and her questions will get heard - even if the school board doesn't answer them.

Perhaps the Stranger can illuminate the School District races and provide insight into those School Board Commission Candidates who are incumbent and those who would run. The superintendent is only one of the problems - a board of accountants is another issue. Where are those who actually care about student learning? And, yes, Seattle Public Schools is about as ugly a bureaucracy as exists - uglier by a factor of 100 than Seattle Parks or SDOT - their only competition.

@17 - I know my District is represented by Hariam Martin-Morris, who constantly sings the praises of Dr. Goodloe-Johnson, voted to renew her contract, and doesn't propose any good, bold ideas...except lowering standards in Seattle Public Schools so more kids would graduate. But that's just fucking asinine.

I guess Frank Blethen hates our schools.

@16 make The Stranger the Huffington Post of the Pacific Northwest!

Keep raising a stink about this. When our founders wrote the part about the freedom of the press, the press consisted of annoying, opinionated buggers who didn't subscribe to any code of ethics and provided more commentary than reporting.

@22: No!!!!!! Then they'd have to fire Jonathan Golob due to his actual understanding of science.

@23 not only that, they used to post their scurrilous rags on people's fenceposts, the dirty ink-stained wretches.

Most of them smelled pretty bad, too, when they weren't lying face down in the gutters, drunk out of their minds.

@21 Blethen may not hate the schools, but he does view them as potential profit centers.
ALTERNATIVE MEDIA UNITE! get her some credentials, Stranger!

Blethen DOES hate public schools. And teacher unions. And anyone who isn't in that upper echelon of income. Simply peruse his so-called editorial pages and watch him bash schools, unions, and any legislation or organization meant to help those who weren't born into money. Meanwhile he salivates as he licks Goodloe-Johnson's boots and Tim Eyman's balls.

@21 Blethen may not hate the schools, but he does view them as potential profit centers.
ALTERNATIVE MEDIA UNITE! get her some credentials, Stranger!

Nice. I read this and almost fell off my chair laughing because I was thinking "Lynne Varner." Why don't you guys hire Ms. Westbrook to cover education? Time to wake up to the fact that your demographic includes public school parents.

If you want to know why people like Melissa were barred from the "press conference" check out
http://seattleducation2010.wordpress.com…

Hire Melissa. Your school coverage has been sucking for quite a long time. There's a lot to report on here, and no one but no one in this town is covering it. It's maddening.
Step up, Stranger. And don't hire some piker. Get someone who knows their shit—Melissa, Charlie Mas, Meg Diaz, Cliff Mass.
We got kids in the schools and we're pissed. Let's get it on, Stranger!

Investigative "Mainstream Journalism is DEAD"

Westbrook carries on as a great investigative journalist. Little wonder the Goodloe-Johnson administration wants her silenced. "No Soup for Her"

Keep on Keepin' On .... Go Melissa.

"Westbrook is part of Committee for Responsible Education Spending, which is campaigning against the $48.2 million schools levy."

I don't have a problem with bias or advocacy journalism. But somehow who is actively involved in making the news and leading opposition? That's a different story.

Bigyaz, the levy is another important story. As you'll note, the Stranger points out that they have disagreed with me in the past and that's probably what they meant.

I know that school levies are like Mom and apple pie. I'm not against school levies nor is the committee I belong to that is advocating against passage of the supplemental levy on the ballot in November.

BUT please understand that we've done our homework. This levy, like others, is NOT what it seems. It is not about "doing it for the kids".

Money, your tax dollars, are NOT being well managed in this district. The most recent state audit says that and calls out BOTH the School Board and district administration for their lack of accountability and oversight. That should worry every single citizen in Seattle. This is not just a single item or single event. This is across-the-board lack of oversight.

The supplemental levy is being portrayed as one that would restore cuts in federal/state money and that the money will go into the classroom. That is not true. Very little of it will see the light of the classroom. In fact, the levy will NOT be restoring money lost due to cuts and goes towards new programs/initiatives.

Please go to:

enforcetopdownreform.blogspot.com

for further details.

Please understand, we seek to make sure that the money goes TO the classroom, to students. The levy is deliberate vague as to what the money will be used for and if it really is an emergency levy to restore cuts, well, you'd have to wonder why each and every dollar wouldn't be accounted for in it.

Melissa Westbrook

@31: Cliff Mass? The weather guy?