Yeah, I'm about to defend Gov. Doyle's former communications director. Stop the presses.
Journal Sentinel: WHEDA gives PR work to ex-Doyle stafferThough one might be tempted to ascribe the kiss of death to her defense of the unknown communications director, a few things are missing from this piece, something a real journalist, or at the least, a competent blogger, would have provided.
Madison -- The state housing authority has paid $64,700 in recent years to a public relations firm run by Gov. Jim Doyle's former communications director.
So what? If he's the former communications director to the governor, presumably he's got the required experience in PR, and they know whether or not he does good work. The real question is whether there was anything awry with the hiring process and whether or not the PR work was really needed and whether or not the taxpayers got their money worth.
Absent any attempt to even explore those questions... who cares?
Uh, what is the name of the former communications director? It might be helpful.
How about a link to the offending piece, or at the very least, the date the piece was printed.
Shouldn't McBride be up front and state she previously worked for Journal Communications before writing a shoddy rip piece?
Why is she still teaching journalism classes? Stop the presses.
Here's the story, or non-story. She's right about that:
ReplyDeleteFRIDAY, June 1, 2007, 4:38 p.m.
By Patrick Marley
WHEDA gives PR work to ex-Doyle staffer
Madison -- The state housing authority has paid $64,700 in recent years to a public relations firm run by Gov. Jim Doyle's former communications director.
The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority paid Nation Consulting $30,200 in 2005, $24,500 in 2006 and $10,000 so far this year for its work, according to the housing authority.
Nation Consulting is run by Thad Nation, who served as Doyle's deputy campaign manager in 2002 and as his communications director after he was first elected.
The WHEDA site lists a director of communications position. The person in it now was named a few months ago. That raises all sorts of interesting questions as to the outsourcing -- was it interim, between directors? etc. -- but I didn't pursue them past the few minutes to find out that much, because I'm not a reporter. Or even a former reporter. It just was enough to tell me that neither the newspaper nor the blogger had looked into this sufficiently to write news (or PR?) we could use.
ReplyDeleteThe real question is whether there was anything awry with the hiring process and whether or not the PR work was really needed and whether or not the taxpayers got their money worth.
ReplyDeleteThat's three questions, the third of which is posed ungrammatically.
And she teaches at a university? How about whether taxpayers are getting their money's worth in her case?
Stop the presses because JMcB is reminding us that she has a severe bias toward a very divisive conservative mentality (aka neoconservatism)?
ReplyDeleteHey, Jessie: How 'bout "shred the Journalist's Code of Ethics" 'cause your "reporting" isn't, as is your objectivity.
Wow, these neocons are a brazen bunch.
And to think she teaches at my alma mater! Yeesh.