Media: Hechinger Honcho Heading To DC Think Tank*

[*Update below the fold click "read more"] Less than two years into the launch of the "new" Hechinger, head honcho Richard Lee Colvin (pictured) is leaving his post and heading to DC think Tank Education Sector.  Ed Sector was founded by journalist Tom Toch (along with Andy Rotherham) but both have since left the organization.  Over the past couple of years Hechinger has funded coverage of education news and brokered placement in newspapers including regional and national editions of the New York Times -- quite successfully, it seemed.  For a time I thought that Richard Whitmire, former USA Today editorial writer, would replace Toch, but that never happened.  I've put a call in to talk to Colvin, a longtime LA TImes education writer, and will report back when I know more. I'm sure there's a rationale to the move that I will soon understand.  (Now maybe finally Hechinger can move over to the Journalism School, which is where it really belongs.)

Update:  Colvin says that the surprise move stemmed from his desire to be in DC and be more directly involved in the policy side of things, as well as his serendipitous arrival on the board of EdSector last summer.  He says that Hechinger has been promised full support from its host, Teachers College president Susan Fuhrman, and that the process of replacing him will begin shortly with his involvement.  Start sucking up now.  Over the past year and change Hechinger projects have been placed in 120 different media outlets including the LAT, NYT, Chicago Tribune, Washington Post -- everyone but the WSJ, basically, plus some radio outlets like Chicago Public Radio.  Colvin doesn't sound particularly worried about undue foundation influence on coverage, noting that funders are told ahead of time they'll have no editorial control and often don't know about a story until it's published.  He reports that there hasn't been any pushback on Hechinger stories from funders.