What Can "Ed In '08" Do To Upgrade Education Issue

EdWeek is really going for it this week.  First the paper slams the New York Times for its sloppy reporting on ADHD -- ADHD Experts Fear Brain-Growth Study Being Misconstrued-- and now it goes into the delicate topic of whether the Gates-Broad "Ed In '08" campaign is making much of a dent. 

The article (Effort for Education as Campaign Issue Fights for Traction) lays out what the effort has done to push the issue -- quite a lot, actually.  Still, Fordham's Mike Petrilli slags the effort.  DFER's Joe Williams says that it's helping keep the issue afloat. Talk about taking on the big boys. No doubt there's some nervousness that things will get awkward next time EdWeek asks either of those foundations for funding.

My only problem with the piece, written by Erik Robelen and Alyson Klein, is that it gives undue credence to the notion that IRS laws against lobbying are a major limitation.  As I wrote last week (Let's Get More Specific), other issue-specific efforts led by nonprofits and charities have gone much further in terms of pushing for specific changes.   It's not too late for Ed In '08 to try the same.