MEDIA: Using Education (Reporters) To Sell The Stimulus

It isn't by accident that this spate of articles about how the stimulus could help save jobs and improve education is coming out over the past few days. 

The new President is trying to get his bill passed -- with some Republican votes.  Sam Dillon's helpful article in the Times a few days ago made it clear that the education portions of the bill -- saving teachers' jobs, keeping schools open -- might be a good selling point to the public, who in turn might pressure Republican lawmakers to help out. 

The always-amenable Call Me Arne Duncan does a round of interviews with education reporters who are just happy to be among the first to interview him after his confirmation. 

Voila, message transmitted.

Problem is, the new stimulus money probably isn't going to get where it needs to go soon enough to prevent cuts and firings that are already happening, and isn't big enough (in a $500B per year industry) to make a real dent.  Plus which, the "reform" elements of the education package are, according to folks I talk to, weak. 

So don't let anyone tell you that the stimulus is going to save schools from making painful cuts over the next few weeks and months, or do much to change the course of school reform.