Posted on 01/07/2005 1:34:01 PM PST by paudio
The Bush administration paid a prominent black journalist to promote President Bush's education law and give Education Secretary Rod Paige media time, records show.
Armstrong Williams, a nationally syndicated radio, print and television personality, was paid $240,000 by the Education Department to promote the No Child Left Behind Act.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
I wonder how they're funneling taxpayer funds to Walter Williams for shilling his convoluted economic propaganda advocating globalization?
Doesn't make sense. There are plenty of conservatives of all races who are willing to write in favor of good fiscal policies (low taxes/less government) out of their own interest without monetary benefits. Maybe MSM spin-job.
I used to like Williams at times, but when he started defending Michael Jackson I wondered if he could be bought. Wow. So this administration knows who can be bought, that's regrettable if true. I wonder who else has gotten government funds to promote policy.
I hope this account is wrong somehow.
Payolla is nothing new to the radio industry.
He's a stand-up guy alright, but this was probably a poor decision. Political commentators should either make their financial obligations clear (like when they are clearly pushing a product) or not take them at all. But I'm not shocked to see government hire people to publicize something. It' called PR and its legit.
Nice of him to take the fall and all that, but how can it be his fault while not being the fault of whoever paid him off? This could get embarassing and doesn't help advance our agenda at all, especially if it was policy and not some isolated act of stupidity by a lower level functionary. I hope it was the former and not the latter.
It may be legal, but "legit"? It's sure not ethical and if we had found the Dept of Education paying Dan Rather in 1999, we would have all just $#!T.
I think what you guys say is correct. Since he is a pundit and NOT a journalist than nothing was tech wrong with it but because it acts as such, well it just shows poor judgement on both parts than anything else. They can use PR but you don't want it too look like you were paying news people which he is not but he acknowledged that since he has radio and does appearances that it could be taken that way......in other words get out there now, expose yourself and leave no room or the Dems to do it....deflate the issue before it rises
That should be "latter and not the former"
The lesson from this for Dubya should be that you cannot outliberal the liberals. Better to to be a conservative than to try and get a liberal to admit you are compassionate.
What a stand up guy --- now that he's been caught.
" Better to to be a conservative than to try and get a liberal to admit you are compassionate."
How many times has he tried that? It's never worked and it never will. It's distressing.
The one thing he didn't say is that he was going to give the money back.
Lol I wonder if he is promoting his book at the same time!
What did Walter Williams say?
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