Friday, January 07, 2005

Bad faith and lack of honesty in government appears to be a continuing problem in the Bush Administration. From packaging messages as fake news, to paying commentator Armstong Williams to talk up "No Child Left Behind" Act and to try and get other black journalists to talk about NCLB, this administration thinks that ethics are for someone else. And "boo" to any commentator, black or white or of any kind, who will take money for promoting ideas, even if they do like the ideas. If this guy were a d.j., this would be payola...
Williams' contract was part of a $1 million deal with Ketchum that produced "video news releases" designed to look like news reports. The Bush administration used similar releases last year to promote its Medicare prescription drug plan, prompting a scolding from the Government Accountability Office, which called them an illegal use of taxpayers' dollars. Williams, 45, a former aide to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, is one of the top black conservative voices in the nation. He hosts The Right Side on TV and radio, and writes op-ed pieces for newspapers, including USA TODAY, while running a public relations firm, Graham Williams Group.
Drug Control Office Faulted For Issuing Fake News Tapes (washingtonpost.com) Education Dept. paid black pundit $240,000 to promote No Child Left Behind Act

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