Comments

1
The Times paywall doesn't work with the Opera browser.
2
I think this post had something good to say, but my gos is it virtually incomprehensible. Get this guy an editor.
3
KAOS, a Delaware corporation.
4
No paywall on my iPad.
The comments on the article are much more fact-based than the article itself. But that does seem to be a hallmark for the Times - they create their own reality. What a waste of paper. And digital space.
5
"One role for media is to confront power and challenge Microsoft’s Bill Gates, Steve Ballmer and Smith to account for the wide gap between their rhetoric on education and their damaging actions on tax avoidance and minimization. Instead local media perpetuates the mythology of our brilliant, benevolent tech billionaires. "

Absolutely. The Gates Foundation (and Gates himself) have co-opted the education story (and bought their way into everything from PTA to NPR). Bill and Melinda Gates are changing the face of public health in the world but the education wing of the Foundation has had few successes and a lot of changing of direction.

Thank you to Mr. Reifman for pointing out the lack of clothing on this particular emperor.
6
The Seattle Times is a POS newspaper. 90% of their articles aren't written by Times staffers, but instead are written by the AP. It's partly because the Times is so cheap-assed lazy and partly because the Times has probably sacked all their own reporters. I hit the pay wall for the Times and I'm never going back. There are other better sources for local news.
7
The Seattle Times loves to woo and bed those in power, rather than hold them accountable.

Good points made to expose Chan's thinking errors.

Where in the world do they find these "journalists?"

Why do they keep them on their dwindling payroll?
8
Jeff Reifman -- before you characterize other journalists' work as flawed, re-read your own. What I've read of yours, I would not consider to be of a professional standard.
9
@outraged - do you have any specific facts that you'd like to rebuke in my reporting? are you willing to respond without the veil of anonymity? are you outraged about me critiquing the Seattle Times lack of reporting? or, are you outraged about some element of my reporting of Microsoft's Nevada operation? what are your disclosures? e.g. any relations to Times or Microsoft? mine are here: http://jeffreifman.com/disclosures

10
Thanks for this article. I'm still wondering how much Microsoft stock Ross Hunter and his family own. I asked this question a few years ago on your blog, Jeff (you didn't know at the time), and I still don't know.
11
@elaineinballard, obviously Hunter's wealth and holdings are private. When I spoke to him a while ago, he seems to have a desire that people like him - I'd just ask him and maybe he'll tell you - visit http://rosshunter.com. In my experience, Microsoft's influence in Olympia is more subtle - Hunter was at Microsoft for 17 years, he has friendships and ties there that go beyond money.

And he likely isn't a legislator for the money. WASH has a part time legislature. They get paid $42k annually - http://www.salaries.wa.gov/documents/Leg…. So, this is actually a good arrangement for both Microsoft and it's ex-employee multi-millionaires. Microsoft get's a an ear and a hand in Olympia and the ex-employees get a meaningful, high profile career.
12
Not a fan of Seattle Times or what Bill Gates Jr., and Microsoft have become due to their positions on support for k-12 public education. This article, however, is a real exception to that rule and one that ought to be wide spread. Love it when the truth be told!

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