Media ethics issues to the fore. There is the black political commentator who was shilling for the No Child Left Behind Act and the Dept. of Education on the right. On the left, is the fallout from the CBS 60 Minutes presentation about Pres. Bush's national guard service. Heads are rolling. But the CBS story didn't cost you, the TaxPayer, any money. The administration's use of political hacks to push its advertising and P.R. agenda is paid for with your hard-earned tax money. Where are those fiscal conservatives when they could save us some money? Kansas City paper on the Dept. of Education and other government agencies paying for ads that use real or fake reporters as shills.

Lucy Dalglish, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, said the administration's efforts make her “extremely nervous and uneasy.” “At first I thought it was an aberration, but now — certainly with the Education Department — it appears to be a pattern, and I'm definitely wondering who else is on their payroll,” she said.

and its fallout.

"The combination of a new 60 Minutes Wednesday management team, great deference given to a highly respected producer and the network’s news anchor, competitive pressures, and a zealous belief in the truth of the segment seem to have led many to disregard some fundamental journalistic principles," the report said.