No PR Firm Left Behind

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In the continuing saga of taxpayer money used to champion Bush administration policies, the Palm Beach Post reports, "A Florida State University center has used more than a half-million in education tax dollars to put a positive spin on President Bush's key school policies, including hiring a public relations firm to teach charter schools to be more media-savvy." As part of a 5-year, $1.2 million No Child Left Behind Act grant, FSU's School Choice Center is using federal money to "make parents aware of all choice programs, including traditional magnet schools, expand the number of choice schools in the state, and help them 'work the media.'" The Post reports, "links on the center's Web site are almost entirely to studies and articles from conservative groups and strong school-choice proponents such as the Cato Institute, the Heritage Foundation, the Center for Education Reform and the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research." Tallahassee-based PR firm Moore Consulting Group has so far received $45,000 to create template advertisements for choice programs and to do media training with charter and private school staff. The School Choice Center is not alone in receiving Education Department money. Several other right-leaning groups are using federal grant dollars "to develop their existing public information campaign[s] about key components of No Child Left Behind."